


They Came On A Saturday

by dancingroses



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Irondad, Kidnapped Peter Parker, More tags to come as the story progresses, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Sorry Not Sorry, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tortured Peter Parker, Whump, accords, but it doesn’t take up much of the dialogue, legal mumbo jumbo, not too different though, slight Au for Captain America: Civil War having been a little different, some torture, this takes place AFTER Endgame but BEFORE Far From Home
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-03
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-01-21 03:48:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 26,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21293132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancingroses/pseuds/dancingroses
Summary: Secretary Ross comes for Spider-Man.Please read Chapter titles to keep up with the timeline!
Relationships: Peter Parker & Bruce Banner, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov, Peter Parker & Steve Rogers, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 76
Kudos: 317





	1. Day 0

The stress was nearly unbearable. Junior year was the most important grade, which meant junior finals were a huge deal. And Peter had four to take and only three days left to prepare. Not to mention the threats that Secretary Ross had begun sending to Mr. Stark.

He knew that Tony had Spider-Man’s true identity, and he wanted it. Because, since Peter was a superhero, he had to sign the accords. And Secretary Ross wasn’t taking no for an answer.

Every day the threats became more and more immediate. Last week he said he would hunt Spider-Man down in the streets of Queens.

Two days ago he said he’d come to the Avengers Tower personally and voice analyze everyone in the building to see if their voice matched records of Spider-Man.

And this morning?

‘ _ Tony, I’ll tell you this once. If you do not surrender Spider-Man by Friday, I will have no choice but to take each and every Avenger into custody and force it out of you. Am I clear?’ _

Tony tried to keep all of this hidden from Peter. No point in freaking him out. But Natasha didn’t agree, so she pulled Peter aside after every call to fill him in. And the stress was eating away at Peter’s brain.

Friday morning, the day of his exams, the day Secretary Ross was coming, Peter woke up to find that he couldn’t move. Not because he was paralyzed, not because he was restrained. No, he was just numb.

The stress had gotten so bad, and had accumulated so ferociously, that Peter’s body literally just shut down. He layed in bed for over half an hour, just staring at the ceiling, trying to convince himself to simply sit up.

Tony came to wake up at 7:00am, only to find Peter already awake. “Rise and shine, squirt.”

“Can’t.” Peter muttered, not even looking up at Tony.

“What do you mean you can’t? Are you okay?” Tony asked, feeling Peter’s forehead.

“Don’t know. Just can’t.” Peter sighed, somehow managing to lift his hand long enough to bury his eyes in his elbow.

“Are you sick?” Tony continued to pester over Peter, not seeming to get the message. Peter didn’t  _ know _ why. He just  _ couldn’t. _

And maybe it was the anxiety. Or maybe it was the stress. But Peter was practically glued to his bed.

“FRIDAY, get Banner.” Tony called, ignoring the following ‘Yes, Boss’ from the AI.

Dr. Banner arrived moments later, and he settled on the side of Peter’s bed.

“Peter? Can you tell me what's going on?” Why did they keep asking him? How many times did he have to say it?

“ _ I don’t know. _ ” He insisted, sighing again.

“Tony, how’s Peter been acting the last few days?” Bruce asked, and Peter was relieved. Finally someone was figuring out that this wasn’t physical.

“Stressed. Withdrawn. He spends almost all day in his room. And the smallest thing ticked him off. I thought it was just a teenager thing.” Tony told him, running a hand through his hair.

“Peter, I think you’re experiencing an acute stress reaction.” Bruce said. “They’re pretty common, but to cause full body numbness is rare.”

“What’s essentially happening, is that Peter’s body has become so stressed out that it didn’t know how to react, so it just shut down. Peter, what’s causing this?”

“I have finals today. And junior year is  _ really _ important. Oh, also. Maybe it’s the fact that Mr. Ross is hunting me like a dog. Maybe that’s it.” Peter spoke with no emotion, and Tony couldn’t help noticing that FRIDAY spoke with more emotion than Peter currently was.

“Secretary Ross? Tony, you didn’t tell me about this.” Bruce accused, turning to glare at Tony.

“Because it doesn’t matter! You know Ross’ bark is bigger than his bite. There’s no way he’s personally gonna fly out here to find the kid. And if he does, so help me god, I’ll kill him.” Tony snapped.

“Well he’s causing Peter so much stress that his body literally can’t process it. It doesn’t know what to do anymore!” Bruce shouted, gesturing at where Peter remained on the bed in the exact same position Tony had found him in.

“What do you want me to do, Bruce? It’s not like I can kill the man without self defense as an excuse!” Tony insisted, not even noticing when Natasha entered the room.

“Would you two stop shouting? Poor Peter is stressed enough. Look at him.” Natasha ordered, sitting next to Peter on the bed.

“How did you-?”

“FRIDAY asked me to come in here. Said you two were torturing the poor kid. Now take this outside.” She snapped, pulling Peter into her lap. Tony opened his mouth to argue, but Natasha’s glare shut him up. He and Bruce left, and Natasha worked on helped Peter relax.

“I know that Ross has got you worried. But don’t be. He has no authority to come looking for you, at least not without official government approval. Spider-Man is the opposite of a threat, they’d never approve a man hunt. And even if they did, we would protect you. You know that.” She assured him, running her fingers through his hair.

“Yeah, I know. That’s exactly why I’m scared. If Ross does come for me, and you guys protect me, you’ll get yourselves in trouble. I hate when you guys get hurt because of me.” Peter whined, looking up at her with tears in his eyes.

“I know you do, Peter. But you can’t honestly expect us to stand down. You are a part of this team, and we protect our own.”

“No.” Peter said, feeling all the energy return to his body. He sat up to face her.

“If Ross comes for me, you have to stand down, Tasha. And you have to stop the others. I can’t watch you guys get hurt or in trouble because of me.” He said emphatically, and she could see he meant it.

“Peter-” She started, but he interrupted her.

“No!  _ Promise me _ , Natasha.” He insisted, and the use of her full name was enough to tell her he wasn’t taking no for an answer.

She didn’t want to promise. But only because she wasn’t sure she could keep it. If Ross came barreling through the front door to drag Peter away, she didn’t know if she could stand by and let it happen. How could she?

“Peter, I don’t think I can.” She told him.

“Natasha, you have to. Please. The only way Ross could ever hurt me is by hurting you or the others. If you’re safe, and they’re safe, then he can’t hurt me. Please, I’m begging you, if Ross comes, you have to  _ stand down. _ ” Peter begged, grabbing her hand.

She’d never seen him this desperate. This serious. It was strange. But she wanted to give him whatever he wanted, he seemed so so desperate.

“Okay. I promise.” The weight of those words nearly crushed her. No matter what, she had to keep her promise. Which meant forcing Tony, and Steve, and Bruce to stand down as well.

Steve and Bruce she might be able to logic her way around, convince them of what Peter had convinced her. But Tony? He was another story.

Tony was the most stubborn man she’d ever met. And to tell him to let the man he hates most drag his son away from him off to god knows where- probably the raft- would not go over easily.

But she made a promise. So she was going to do her damndest to get it done.

“Thank you.” He said, his shoulders sagging in relief.

“You have school.” Natasha said, handing Peter his backpack, before leaving so he could get dressed.

Natasha felt like the weight of the world was on her shoulders as she entered the living room. Rogers was currently making breakfast for everyone, eggs and toast, and he seemed oblivious to the day’s events.

Tony and Bruce were on the couch watching the morning news, Tony’s feet up on the coffee table as he sipped his tea. Bruce had put him on a zero coffee diet, claiming it was ‘exacerbating his nerves’. Tony wasn’t too happy about that, but he surrendered after days of pestering from Bruce.

Moments later Peter came bustling through the room like a tornado, stuffing his face with food and sprinting out the door with nothing more than a ‘see ya!’ Clearly he felt better.

Natasha crossed her arms anxiously, not sure how to approach this conversation.

“Can I have everyone’s attention?” She asked, and Bruce dropped his newspaper to look up at her.

“Sup’ Widow?” Tony asked, changing the channel.

“This is important, Stark.” She insisted, and that seemed to get his attention.

“Sup’?” He asked again, fully engaged this time. Steve came over to sit on the couch to join the conversation.

“Peter made me promise him something, and it involves you three.” She started, noticing how worried Tony looked immediately.

“What was it?” He asked cautiously, knowing that Peter could get anyone to promise anything.

“I’m sure you’re aware of the situation involving Secretary Ross?” She asked, looking at Steve. He nodded grimly.

“Peter made me promise that if Ross does come for him, the four of us would stand down.” She said, waiting for the explosion. And it came.

“You did what?!” Tony shouted, standing up.

“Tony, hear me out. I think Peter’s right.” She spoke calmly, not wanting to start a fight.

“But-” Tony started, being shushed by Bruce.

“Please explain. How is he right?” Bruce asked, seeming confused.

“Peter told me that the only way Ross could hurt him is by hurting us. He says that if we’re okay, he’s okay. That makes sense to me. Besides, if we intervene and Ross kills one of us, that’s one less person to help get Peter back.” Steve nodded, and Natasha knew he was already on her side.

“She’s right. We can’t help Peter by getting ourselves killed.” He added, mostly speaking to Tony.

“What? Oh, so you just expect me to stand here and do nothing while that  _ psychopath _ drags my kid off to some underwater hellhole? No. No way!” Tony shouted, gesticulating angrily.

“Tony, Peter made me promise. Besides, what do you think it would do to him to watch a third father die in front of him?” Natasha asked, glaring at Tony.

“That’s not fair.” He said, glaring back.

“Yes it is. Answer me. What would it do to Peter? To watch you die in front of him? Any of you. I won’t let you do that to him. He’s been through enough.” She snapped, not looking away from Tony.

Tony paused, sitting back down on the couch. Steve and Bruce remained quiet, letting the two hash it out. Neither of them wanted to get involved.

“I won’t promise that.” Tony spoke quietly, staring at the floor.

“Anthony Stark-” She was interrupted by him looking up at her with sad eyes.

“Natasha, I don’t think I  _ can. _ Even if I wanted to. I don’t make promises I can’t keep.” Tony said, running a hand down his face. She moved forward to crouch in front of him. 

“We are Ross’ only bargaining chips. As long as we’re healthy and alive, so is Peter. Ross knows torture won’t work with that kid. Or at least he’ll find out pretty quickly. Listen, I’m not happy about this either, you know that. But I trust Peter. And if he says this will give him even the slightest sliver of peace in that wretched place, that’s good enough for me.” She told him, a hand on his knee. Tony looked up at her, and the two made eye contact for a few seconds.

“Okay. Okay! I promise.” He sighed heavily, leaning back into the couch.

“Me too.” Bruce said. “I promise. Now I can’t speak for the big guy, but I can speak for myself.” Natasha offered him a smile.

“I promise too. Peter’s right.” Steve said, nodding joylessly.

“We might be doing this for nothing. Ross might never come.” She said, trying to remain positive. But the men in the room didn’t seem to agree.

“Dibs on picking the kid up after school.” She exclaimed, glancing at where Tony was staring off into space, chewing his nails.

Bruce and Steve had already gone back to what they were doing when she walked in. Natasha decided it best to leave Tony to his devices. This was something he needed to work out on his own.

So instead, she went to the gym. Taking out her frustrations on a punching back seemed much healthier and more efficient than taking them out on Ross’ face.

At 3:15pm Natasha left to pick up Peter. He was waiting for her by the front gate of his school.

“Hey Tasha!” He called as he climbed into the passenger seat, immediately reaching for the radio. She gently stopped his hand.

“We have to talk.” She said, turning to face him.

“Oh. Did you talk to them?” He asked, looking at the strap on his backpack.

“Yes I did. And they all promised. Even Tony. But he was difficult to convince if I’m honest.” Peter looked up at that.

“They all promised?” He asked, seeming like all the tension in his body was whisked away.

“Yes. Now, let’s get some fast food on the way home and not tell the guys.” Peter always loved fast food, and Natasha understood it. Despite her figure and the fact that everyone assumed she was a health nut, she would always make an exception for Jack in the Box.

In truth, Steve and Bruce were the health nuts. No surprise there. Tony ate anything they put in front of him. And so did Peter.

“Oh score! By the way, I’m feeling really good about my finals today. I had some trouble with a few physics questions, but I’m pretty sure I figured it out.” Peter told her, seeming happy. She smiled back at him.

“I knew you could do it. You’re like a baby Einstein.” She joked, pulling out of the parking lot.

The two of them laughed and joked the whole way home, ignoring the stares Natasha got at the drive through window. Sometimes she couldn’t tell if they were looking at her because they recognized her as Black Widow, or just because they thought she was pretty.

Once they arrived back at the tower, Peter hurried up to his room to do his homework, and Natasha got the feeling he was avoiding Tony on purpose.

“Go talk to him.” She mouthed at Tony, falling onto the couch and putting her feet in Steve’s lap.

Tony sighed, before heading upstairs to Peter’s room. He knocked twice before he heard a response.

“Come in.” Peter called, dropping his homework on the bed.

“Hey kid.” Tony said, sitting on the edge of the mattress.

“Hey.”

They remained silent for a minute or two, neither of them wanting to start.

“I think you’re a massive idiot.” Tony blurted out, and Peter didn’t even acknowledge him.

“Yes, I did promise. And because I’m a good person, I’m going to do my best to keep that promise. But don’t think I’m not pissed about it. Not at you though. Just the Situation. But also slightly at you.” Peter nodded silently, fidgeting with his hands.

“I appreciate you promising. And I hope you understand why I asked that of you guys in the first place.” Peter said, still not looking up from his hands.

“I do, kid. If I were you I’d do the same thing. And you’d say no, because you’re a stubborn kid. I get it Peter, I do. Doesn’t mean I’m happy about it. However, since you made me promise something, you owe me a promise.” Peter finally looked up.

“Yeah, what?” He asked, chewing on his lip absentmindedly.

“Promise me, that if Ross does come for you, you will cooperate, and you won’t do anything stupid to get yourself hurt or killed. Promise me that you’ll trust us to come for you.” Tony hated that he was even having this conversation right now.

They were being forced to make plans because in advance they knew someone might come and practically kidnap Peter, and there was  _ nothing _ they could do about it. Because, despite all logic and justice, it was  _ legal. _ This whole thing was legal. All because Peter got bit by a bug.

Tony remember what Ross had done to the rogue Avengers. And he remembered how infuriating it was to be forced to sit back and let it happen, for fear of legal retaliation. Luckily, Rogers had rescued them illegally, so Tony could sleep better at night. And even luckier, Ross let him get away with it.

But Tony couldn’t help feeling like coming for Peter was some sick kind of payback. And considering the way Ross and his people had treated Wanda, a damn teenage girl, he could only imagine the way they’d treat Peter. And it made him sick to think about.

“Yeah. I promise. No stupid stuff.” Peter said, raising his hands in surrender. That eased Tony’s concern at least a little bit.

If Peter cooperated, and Tony didn’t want to think this but he had to, but if Peter acted like a model  _ prisoner _ , maybe Ross would go easy on the kid long enough for Tony and the others to get to him.

When Ross first arrived, there would be nothing they could do, because there would be men with guns. But the second Ross and Peter set foot on the raft-

Tony had to pause and take a deep breath because the thought of Peter in that  _ hellhole _ was making his stomach twist painfully.

The second Peter and Ross landed on the raft, the Avengers could take legal action. And Tony was sure that with Rhodey’s help he could get Peter exonerated, considering he’s a minor and wasn’t involved in any of the major events Ross used as an excuse to create the accords.

Minors weren’t allowed to sign contracts, and any contracts they do sign are not legally binding. And the minute Tony explains that to Rhodey’s government contacts, Peter will be let go.

Now the day Peter turns 18, this all changes and becomes much more difficult. But at least they’ll buy some time. Hopefully enough time for Tony to completely dismantle the entire accords problem.

“Okay, good. Just… keep your head down until this all blows over. No patrolling, no Spider-Man. You go to school and you come straight home. And one of us is driving you to and from every day, no more walking.” Tony said, feeling like he was grounding the poor kid.

“Got it.” Peter agreed, offering Tony a thumbs up.

“Finish your homework, squirt.” Tony ordered gently, before heading back down to the living room.

“Kid’s gonna give me a damn stroke. Bruce can stress cause a stroke?” Tony joked, grabbing a soda from the fridge. Bruce had also put Tony on a zero alcohol diet.

“Actually, yes it can. Why? Should I be concerned?” Bruce asked, looking up from his newspaper.

“Not sure yet.” Tony answered half honestly.

The avengers, minus Peter, remained in the living the rest of the day, watching movies and reminiscing on the first few Avengers missions.

Meanwhile Tony tried his best to avoid that stroke.


	2. Day 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ross comes for Peter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is a little short, but the next one is longer, I promise. And yes, we will have some of Peter’s POV in later chapters.

They came on a Saturday. There was no warning, something was disrupting FRIDAY’s alarm system. 

One minute the Avengers were at the table having breakfast and telling stories, and the next minute the door was being blown in, smoke filling the room.

“Tony.” Secretary Ross said, offering a curt smile.

“Ross.” Tony snapped, a clear warning. Ross paid no mind to Tony’s admonition.

“And who’s this?” Ross smiles properly this time, gesturing to Peter, who was being held behind Natasha.

“He’s my intern. Nothing more.” Tony said, feeling uncomfortable with Ross even looking at Peter. Not to mention the four heavily armed men flanking him.

“Don’t play me, Stark. We have enough evidence to prove that Peter Parker is Spider-Man.” Ross said, a threatening glare in his eyes.

“Oh bullshit! Your evidence is circumstantial at best!” Ross only laughed in response.

“Hell of a circumstance, Tony. Besides, clearly it was enough. Seeing as the president himself has approved my motion to detain Mr. Parker to acquire further proof.” That was like a slap to the face. He and Rhodey had saved President Ellis’ life a few years ago, and now he was approving Ross to detain Tony’s kid?

Ross made a move towards Peter, but Tony stepped in front of him and shoved him back. Ross fumed, as the four armed men aimed at Tony.

“Touch me again, and you’ll be charged with assaulting a government official on top of obstruction of justice and I’ll have no choice but to detain you as well!” Ross yelled, pushing Tony’s hands off of him.

“Mr. Stark, stop.” Peter asked, moving forward to step between the older men.

“Peter-” Tony started, but the kid interrupted.

“You promised.” Peter reminded him, raising his eyebrows expectantly. Tony closed his eyes and licked his lips frustratedly.

“Mr. Parker, do you plan on cooperating?” Ross asked, turning to look at Peter, ignoring Tony’s furious huff of breath.

“Yes, I do. If you promise not to hurt my family.” Peter replied, gesturing to the other avengers. Steve seemed calm, but Natasha could feel how tense his shoulders were. She herself was livid, but she made a promise, and she intended to keep it. Bruce has stepped out of the room, for fear of the Hulk taking over.

“If they stand down, I have no reason to harm them.” Ross smiled, winking at Tony, who Steve had to physically restrain from tackling the gray haired man.

Peter nodded, before walking over to Ross, fidgeting with his hands. One of the armed men emerged with silver handcuffs in his hands, clearly vibranium. Tony jerked against Steve’s grip.

Peter held his hands forward obediently, his fists clenched nervously.

“Ross, stop this! He’s just a kid!” Tony begged, fighting with Steve.

“He’s also a superhuman. Who needs to be held accountable for any and all past or future mistakes. Same as any of you. His age is irrelevant in this situation.” There was an audible  click as the cuffs locked around Peter’s wrists, who flinched as one of the men gripped his shoulder.

“Mr. Stark, it’s okay. I’ll be fine.” Peter seemed to be reassuring himself as much as he was Tony.

“Time to go, kid.” Ross said, gesturing for Peter to follow him out the door.

“Peter, we’re gonna come get you. You know that right?” Steve promised, keeping his grip tight on Tony.

“Yeah. I trust you.” Peter said, before following Ross outside.

The second Peter was out of their sight Tony went limp. Steve hesitated before letting him go, unsure if he’d chase after them. But when he was released Tony just slumped to his knees, looking like he’d been stabbed in the heart.

Natasha kneeled in front of him, taking his face in her hands. “We’re going to get him back, Tony. Ross won’t even have time to question him.”

Tony nodded numbly, rubbing his face with his hands. “They took him. We just let them take our kid. Who knows what they’re gonna do?” Tony rambled, his voice breaking.

“Listen to me. You call Rhodey, tell him to get his ass down to the Raft. He has clearance to be there, he can keep an eye on Peter.” Natasha told him, hoping that was enough to get him off the ground. Luckily, it was. Tony slowly got to his feet and pulled out his phone.

“Rhodes. Remember that thing I talked to you about yesterday? Ross came, and they took Peter. You’re the only friendly I’ve got who can get on that boat.” Tony chatted with Rhodey for nearly an hour, working on a plan to get Peter exonerated.

Natasha went up to the gym to work off her anger, and Steve… well no one knew where Steve went. He just got in his car and drove off. Natasha had suspicions that he was going to see Bucky, but she kept it to herself.

And Tony? Tony had never been this terrified in all his life. Not when he flew through that wormhole in New York. Not when he was dying of Palladium poisoning. He’d never felt fear like this before. It was like the concern was consuming him.

He knew that Ross had laws he had to stick to, but he also knew that the secretary could get away with anything. Including experimenting on Peter like a rat. The thought of it made Tony’s stomach roll and he had to sit down.

He had to remind himself that Natasha was right. They were going to get him back. No matter what it took. Tony would rain down on that boat like hellfire.

It did offer him a sense of comfort that Rhodey would be on the raft with Peter. Tony trusted Rhodes to keep the kid safe, as much as he could anyway.

He had to have faith in his friends, that they were enough to defy the entire federal government and a paper signed by the United Nations to keep Peter out of all of this legal bullshit. 

Rhodey had Natasha had both given a maximum of one week before they had Peter back in their arms. If only they knew how wrong they were.

But let’s take this slow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the hits and nice comments so far. I’m very excited about this fic.


	3. Day 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers hear from Rhodey. Peter meets a possible ally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> But of a longer chapter, and we finally see Peter’s POV on the raft. Enjoy!

Tony woke to Natasha shaking his shoulder.

“Rhodes called. We need to meet.” She said, pulling him into a sitting position. He followed her to the living room about to explode at the tension building in his shoulders.

“What did he say?” Tony asked anxiously.

“Tony, I think you should sit down.” Steve started, gesturing towards the couch. Tony shook his head frustratedly.

“No. No just tell me.” Tony demanded.

“Rhodey’s government contacts can’t help, because Ross has the approval of the president and the UN. We’re just gonna have to find another way.” Steve said, watching Tony warily.

Suddenly, the room started spinning. Tony didn’t even feel his knees hit the ground, but he did feel hands grabbing his shoulders to steady him.

“Tony! Tony, breathe. We’ll find another way. We’ll get him back. Just breathe.” It sounded like Natasha talking but Tony couldn’t be sure. Everything sounded like he was underwater.

All he could do was imagine that bastard of a secretary experimenting on the kid.  _ His _ kid. Coming up with a whole new plan could take days or even weeks. And if Peter was in the hands of those psychopaths for even five more minutes Tony was worried he might have a heart attack.

He took a moment to remind himself how to breathe, letting Natasha reassure him that they would find another way, no matter how long it took, and that they would bring Peter home. 

“I already have another idea.” Bruce said, patting Tony’s shoulder. “Peter is a minor, which means any contracts he signs are not legally binding. So even if he does sign the accords, it has no effect. Which means they have no reason to hold him. Tony, call Rhodes back. Let him know.”

Now that, Tony could do. So he got on his feet and grabbed his phone, dialing Rhodey’s number.

The call went okay. Rhodey told Tony that he would make some calls again and bring up Peter’s minor status. It would have to go through the UN all over again, which could take a while. But it was a start.

-POV change-

The walls were grey, the mattress was grey, the ceiling and floor were grey, even his outfit was grey. It was overwhelming how much grey surrounded him. The moment he’d arrived on the raft they’d made him change into a grey shirt and sweats, and grey shoes. Guess they really love grey here.

Then they left him in this room for the rest of the day, alone. The next morning they came to process him, which included fingerprint scanning, and a physical from a man in a lab coat.

Peter was forcing himself to control his nerves, but it didn’t help that his spidey senses were screaming  _ danger! _

By lunchtime he was sat in a chair at a table in what looked like a police interrogation room. There was a large mirror on the wall by the door, and soundproof foam covering the walls.

“Good afternoon, Peter. My name is Secretary Ross.” The man was average height, with white tips to his grey hair. Great. Even more grey.

“I know.” Peter muttered, doing his best not to slouch.

“I’m sorry? Did I say you could speak?” Peter pinched his lips at that, trying not to piss off the powerful man.

“I’m here to explain the rules. Rule one: no eye contact. Rule two: no talking unless given permission. Rule three: no eating without permission. Even if the food is right in front of you, you will wait for verbal confirmation before eating. And rule four: no crying or screaming. Do you understand?” Ross asked, placing his hands on the table so he could lean forward.

Was this a test? Was Ross asking him a question equal to permission to speak?

“Yes.” Peter spoke shyly, awaiting yelling.

“Yes sir.” Ross corrected, leaning closer to Peter.

“Yes sir.” His spidey senses were going mad like the alarms in Stark tower, and Peter had to force himself to sit still.

He knew he could take out Ross in a split second, but what kind of repercussions would follow if he did?

“Boys. Take him to the lab. Get Dr. Morrison in. It’s time to start.” Ross ordered, stepping back from the table and adjusting his tie.

Two armed men entered and grabbed Peter’s biceps, leading him out of the room. Peter decided it was best to comply, seeing as Ross had full legal approval behind him. If Peter refused to cooperate, he’d only find himself in more trouble.

They led him down the hall to a large, all white room with medical machines all over. The men lift Peter off the ground and onto the table in the middle of the room, telling him to lay down. Peter does as he’s told, his heart racing a mile a minute.

The same man with the lab coat entered the room, moving straight to the white board on the wall.

“Good Morning, Mr. Parker. My name is Dr. Morrison. How are you today?” Peter assumed that questions meant permission, so he responded.

“Nervous. Why am I here?” Peter asked, fidgeting with his hands.

“Well, Peter. I’m sure you’re aware of the accords?” The Dr. asked, finally looking at Peter, who nodded anxiously. “Well the whole point of the accords was to keep superhumans in check. To make sure they were held accountable. But we’ve never met someone like you before. And Secretary Ross is… concerned.”

Peter wants to ask what Ross is concerned about, but then he remembered he shouldn’t speak without permission. Dr. Morrison seemed to notice this.

“Don’t worry, Peter. You’re always free to speak when you’re in here.” Morrison assured him, messing with something Peter couldn’t see.

“What is he concerned about?” Peter asked, feeling his shoulders loosen up. Dr. Morrison seemed kind, and that helped Peter relax.

“That one day you’ll make a world altering mistake. And no one will be able to stop you. If you were to snap and turn evil, you’d be unstoppable. And that makes the government very nervous. So I’m here to find a way to stop you.” Peter found himself chewing his lip.

“Are you gonna hurt me?” He asked, glancing up anxiously at the doctor.

“Not if you cooperate. I can’t promise no pain, but I can promise to be as gentle as possible.” That seemed genuine, and again, Peter relaxed.

“Cooperate with what? What are you gonna do?” The doctor seemed to find Peter’s curiosity funny.

“Today I’m simply going to take a blood sample. I’m sure you’ve experienced that before?” The man smiled, gesturing to the needle and empty vials next to him.

“Yeah. Couple times.” 

“Good.” The doctor said, bringing his materials over to Peter. “You can sit up.”

Peter listened, sitting up on the table. He held his hand out obediently, and Dr. Morrison smiled reassuringly at him.

Peter flinched when the needle entered his arm, but besides that he remained still, letting the doctor do his job. Dr. Morrison kept him talking, asking about his friends and his school. Peter talked freely, making up fake names for people in case Morrison was tricking him to go after his friends.

“Alright. Looks like we’re done for the day. These men will take you back to your room now. See you tomorrow, Peter.” Dr. Morrison said, offering a kind smile.

The same men from before led Peter all the way back to his bleak cell, locking the door behind them. Peter paced at first, wondering how long it would take before he got bored and before his family came to get him. He just wished they’d give him a phone call. So he could tell Mr. Stark that he was okay.

As the day drew to a close, Peter found himself struggling to sleep. Dr. Morrison said he couldn’t promise no pain. What exactly were they planning to do to him?


	4. Day 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhodey offers to travel to the raft to watch over Peter. Meanwhile, Dr. Morrison’s tests become more painful and dangerous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy Day 4.

“I talked to Ross. He said I would be able to stay on the raft for a few days. Luckily I have President Ellis’ approval. Said he owed me after the whole AIM debacle. I’ll keep an eye on Peter, I promise.” Rhodey had arrived four days after Peter was taken, and Tony had never been so happy to see his friend.

“Thank you, Rhodey. I owe you.” Tony said, gripping his friend’s shoulder.

“My pleasure. I don’t wanna see a seventeen year old kid get hurt any more than you do. I’ll update you every six hours.” Rhodey assured him, before climbing back into the War Machine suit and taking off.

Tony returned to the living room to deliver the good news to the anxious avengers.

“Rhodey’s on his way to the raft right now.” Tony told them, noticing the way all the tenseness left their shoulders.

“Good. Hopefully he can keep Peter safe for a few days.” Steve said, a relieved smile on his face.

Rhodey’s government contacts had gotten back to them about their plan to remind Ross that Peter was a minor, therefore meaning he couldn’t sign any contracts. But Rhodey’s contacts had told them it could take over a month for their appeal to reach the president and the UN, let alone for them to make a decision.

Since then, the avengers had been beyond stressed. The idea of leaving Peter in the hands of those psychos for a whole month? Maybe more? It was unbearable to even think about. So they tried not to think about it. Natasha had reminded them that it was best to focus on today.

Two hours later Rhodey called.

“Rhodey! Are you there? Have you seen him? Is he okay?” Tony demanded the second he picked up the phone.

“Slow down, Tones. I’ve got a lot to tell you. First, the kid seems okay. A little nervous, but they haven’t hurt him yet, or at least he said they didn’t. I’m not so sure I believe him. He wouldn’t speak, he wouldn’t even look at me. When I finally got him to talk, after telling him he was allowed to, he just asked me if you guys were okay. Ross is doing his best to keep me away from him.” Rhodey told Tony the whole story in one breath, and the billionaire was nearing hysteria.

He didn’t like that Rhodey was implying that Peter had been hurt. The thought made his stomach twist painfully.

He had a million questions. A million things he wanted to say to his kid. But he knew there was no way he’d get to speak to Peter.

“But now that you’re there, you’re gonna watch him, right?” Tony begged, nodding to Steve and Natasha, who were waiting quite impatiently to hear the update on Peter.

“I’m not taking my eyes off of him. I promise.” Rhodey swore, sounding determined.

“Good. Thank you. Tell the kid that we’re coming soon, okay?” Tony asked, trying not to cry. He just wanted to  _ speak _ to Peter. Why was that too much to ask?

They ended the call, and Tony turned to Natasha and Steve, telling them the same thing Rhodey had said.

“They’re hurting him?” Natasha nearly shouted, and Tony had to quiet her before Bruce heard. The last thing they needed was for the Hulk to find out about this and go mad. Literally.

“Rhodes isn’t sure. Peter insists that they aren’t, but Rhodey doesn’t believe him.” Tony sighed, chewing on his lip nervously. Why would Peter say they weren’t hurting him if they were? Was he being forced to stay quiet?

“Have you heard from the VP yet?” Steve asked, ignoring Natasha’s outburst. The Vice President, well the new one, considering the last one conspired with terrorists… Anyway, the VP was the one who was supposed to call when they received word of the appeal. But Tony hadn’t heard anything yet.

“Nothing. If I had, you’d know.” Tony muttered, staring at the phone in his hands.

“So what? Until then we just sit here and stare at the ceiling?” Natasha asked incredulously, placing her hands on her hips.

“There’s nothing else we can do today.” Tony spoke quietly, before slumping out of the room.

They knew this was wearing on him painfully. It was getting to all of them. But none of them were as attached or bonded to Peter as Tony. Hell, last month Peter accidentally called him Dad. Neither of them had mentioned it since, but Natasha knew they both thought of it obsessively.

Steve walked up to the whiteboard and drew a new tally mark. So far, there were four. And Natasha felt a knot settle in her stomach as she pictured the board filled with marks. Filled with days that they didn’t have their kid. Days that Peter was probably hurt, and scared, and alone.

Refusing to cry in front of Captain freaking America, she hurried out of the room and up to the gym. No better way to blow off steam than to punch a large bag and pretend it was Ross’  _ face _ .

-POV Switch-

Peter was awoken by the door to his cell, sorry, ‘room’ slamming open.

“Rise and shine, freak. Dr. Morrison wants to see you.” The armed man in the doorway spoke with a sour tone, and Peter flinched, staring at his feet as he pulled his shoes on.

He rose to his feet, letting the man roughly grip his arm and drag him out of the room. They made their way down the hall in silence, before arriving at the lab.

“Ah! Hello, Peter. Please, have a seat.” Dr. Morrison said, a warm smile on his face. Peter complied, happy to see a chair instead of the intimidating table that was there last time Peter was in this room.

“What’s the uh… plan for today?” Peter asked, crossing his ankles.

“Today is very exciting. Today you get to show off your skills!” The doctor yelled excitedly, gesturing to the glass wall that separated the lab from a smaller, completely white room.

“What do I do?” The doctor seemed genuinely thrilled, and Peter wasn’t sure if he should be relaxed or terrified by it.

“Well, two of our specially trained guards are going to get in that room with you, and your job is to neutralize the threat. It’s quite simple. You might even have fun.” Peter wanted to ask the obvious question, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to hear the answer.

“By neutralize… do you want me to kill them?” Peter asked shyly, slouching to make himself seem smaller.

“No no no. Of course not, Peter. Just knock them out. Once you’ve won, I’ll monitor your vitals for a few minutes, and then you’ll be free to return to your room. Sound good?” 

Peter wasn’t sure how much he trusted that. It sounded too good to be true. He was sure he’d been brought here to be tortured and poked and prodded. Not evaluated. But then again, Dr. Morrison had been nothing but nice since they met, and he’d given Peter no reason not to trust him.

“Yeah. Sounds good.” The two armed men entered the small white room, and Dr. Morrison waved Peter over to him.

“I need a control. You like science, so I’m assuming you know what that means?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at Peter, who nodded. “Good. So we’ll take your vitals now, so I can recognize any and all changes from after the fight.”

The doctor checks his blood pressure, offers him a thermometer, and checks his pulse and breathing rate. Once they’re done, he gestures for Peter to enter the white room.

Peter glanced nervously at the armed men as he entered, not sure if they were waiting for a cue or if they were just going to attack him at random.

“Ready? Begin.” Dr. Morrison said, holding a clipboard to take notes. 

The man on Peter’s right lunged at him, but Peter was quick enough to grab his hand and flip him over. The first man groaned as the second pulled out a knife and made his move.

Peter, throughout the fight, had labeled the men as Thing 1 and Thing 2. Thing 1 was clearly trained in martial arts. Most of his moves involved kicks and punches. Thing 2 however, seemed to have been trained in street fighting. He was all about the dirty moves.

Which included kicking Peter’s feet out from under him, and kicking him once he was down. Peter found himself getting cut once or twice by the knife, but he eventually managed to get both men on the ground. They stayed down, and Peter sighed in relief.

“Wonderful work, Peter! Please, join me.” The doctor said, waving Peter over.

They took his vitals again, and Dr. Morrison seemed surprised. “You’re heart rate is remarkably slow for someone who just won a fight.”

Peter already knew that. Mr. Stark had raised concerns about it once or twice in the past. “Yeah, no matter what I do, it just stays down.”

Dr. Morrison tended to Peter’s wounds, before two new armed men came to retrieve him. He was dragged back to his room, before being shoved to the floor and having the door slam behind him.

It was all so confusing! Dr. Morrison seemed so nice and genuinely interested in Peter, yet the guards and Secretary Ross treated him like an animal. Speaking of Secretary Ross…

“Good afternoon, Peter. How was your day in the lab?” Ross asked, squinting as if he was waiting for something.

“It was okay. Dr. Morrison had me-”

“Give me your hand.” Ross interrupted, holding his right hand out. Peter hesitated, before placing his hand in Ross’.

Suddenly there was a violent, white hot pain bursting through his arm, and Peter’s whole body jolted as he fell to his knees. He hand was  _ burning _ and he felt like he was on fire. What was that?!

The pain vanished suddenly, and Peter gasped in a breath, his eyes wide. He looked up at Ross in shock, and the man only grimaced.

“What is rule number two, Peter?” Ross asked, glaring at the still panting teenager.

Peter realized his mistake, and also recognized this was a second test, so he didn’t answer.

“Answer me.” Ross ordered, officially giving Peter express permission.

“No speaking unless given permission. Sorry, sir.” Peter muttered, staring at his shoes.

“Good. Maybe next time you’ll remember.” Ross sneered, waving the taser in Peter’s face before he stalked out of the room.

Peter felt his whole body start to shake, so he stumbled over to the bed and sat down. He could feel the tears coming, so he took a deep breath and forced them down. Rule four: no crying or screaming.

There was a security camera in the corner above the door, and if he got caught crying they’d only tase him again. Guess he learned his lesson. The door opened again, and Peter flinched, keeping his eyes glued to the floor.

“Hey, Pete. Can I talk to you?” Wait. That was Colonel Rhodes!

Peter so desperately wanted to look up and confirm his suspicions, but he reminded himself not to take the risk. If he was wrong, and Rhodey wasn’t here as a friend, Peter wasn’t going to fall for it.

“Tony sent me to keep an eye on you. Just wanted to let you know, they’re doing everything they can to get you back, okay?” Rhodey assured him, placing a hand on Peter’s knee. The kid flinched slightly, but it was enough for Rhodey to pull his hand away.

“Peter, are they hurting you?” Rhodey asked, seeming genuinely concerned as he crouched in front of Peter. Maybe Colonel Rhodes was here as a friend. Nonetheless, Peter shook his head.

“Talk to me, kid. I won’t hurt you.” That counted as permission, right?

“Hey, Colonel Rhodes.” Peter muttered, still not looking up from his grey sneakers. If Peter looked up, they’d catch it on the camera and come back and tase him again.

“Hi, Peter. And please, call me Rhodey. Now, are you sure they’re not hurting you?” Rhodey asked again, not believing Peter for one second.

“Yes, sir. I’m sure.” Peter said, his shoulders tensing. Now it was Rhodey’s turn to flinch, although Peter didn’t understand why.

“Okay, kid. I’ll tell them you’re okay. They’re worried.” Rhodey sighed heavily, before pushing himself to his feet and leaving the room. That got Peter’s attention.

Rhodey could just call Mr. Stark whenever he wanted? So Peter could deliver him a message! If Rhodey ever returned to see him, that is.

Peter fell asleep that night with just a sliver of hope. Which would have to be enough for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m way ahead of myself and I skipped several chapters in my documents to write the reunion scene because I’m a sucker for reunions but don’t worry, I’m filling in the gaps. :)


	5. Day 5

“Time to get up, freak.” Thing 1 snapped, kicking Peter’s bed. The teen jolted awake, having barely gotten any sleep.

“The doc wants to see you.” Thing 2 said, letting Peter out his shoes on before dragging him down the hall.

“Ah! Good morning, Peter! How are you today?” Dr. Morrison cheered, greeting Peter at the door and leading him over to the chair in the middle of the room.

“Exhausted. I barely got any sleep.” Peter was honest with the doctor, because he seemed trustworthy enough, and really, what’s the harm of him knowing Peter’s tired?

“Well, that’s no good. What kept you up?” Dr. Morrison asked, typing away on his computer.

“I’m not sure. I guess I just miss my family.” Peter muttered, fidgeting with his hands.

“Homesick. That’s to be expected. But don’t worry, Peter. You’ll be home in no time. As soon as I finish my research, and Secretary Ross decides what to do about all of this.” The doctor assured him, patting his shoulder.

“What are we doing today?” Peter asked, hoping it wouldn’t be another fight.

“Today, you get some exercise. I’m just going to have you run on that treadmill for as long as you can, and we’ll monitor your heart rate while you do it. Sound easy?” Peter smiled with relief. That did sound easy.

And it was. For a while. But even a superhuman gets tired eventually. Peter was jogging for almost two hours before he felt even the slightest bit of exhaustion. Dr. Morrison kept him talking, asking about his favorite subject in school and if he was in any clubs.

But around the two hour limit, Peter’s body started complaining. He felt a cramp in his right hip, and his legs grew weary as he started panting.

Another thirty minutes and Peter nearly collapsed. So he stopped the treadmill and laid down on the floor of the lab, his neck pressed against the cold tiles.

“Your heart rate remained perfectly consistent for nearly that entire experience! Incredible! I wonder how you do it.” Dr. Morrison rambled, scrabbling on his clipboard as Peter panted on the ground, sweat drenching his hair.

Peter had never felt exhaustion like this before. I mean sure, when he was normal he got tired sometimes, but this was different. It was like his brain was throbbing inside his skull, and he felt  _ hot _ . Like he was sitting inside a volcano. His lungs were tight, making his breaths come out as wheezes, and god did he feel nauseous.

“Here. Drink this.” The doctor said, handing Peter a water bottle. Peter forced himself to sit up so he could chug the water, and he did.

“Don’t worry, we’re done for the day. You can go back to your room and rest.” Peter sighed with relief, letting Thing 1 and 2 pull him to his feet and practically carry him back to his room.

Peter collapsed onto the mattress, immediately soaking his pillow with sweat.

“Parker!” Someone snapped, and Peter had to hold back a whine as he sat up.

“Yes sir?” He asked, making sure not to look at the Secretary.

“Fifty push-ups. Right now.” Ross ordered, and Peter paused to calm himself down. Surely he was joking, right?

“Do you think this is a game? Down on the ground, Parker!” Peter was good at push-ups. Usually he could drop 200 right on the spot. But right now? He wasn’t sure he could even do five.

Nonetheless, to avoid getting tazed he forced himself to his feet and got down on the ground. Ross counted him off pretty fast, and Peter did his best to keep up, but his arms were shaking violently and his whole torso was sore.

Somewhere around 45 Peter’s arms gave out and he fell to the floor.

“Did I say you could stop?” Ross boomed, snapping his fingers near Peter’s face. It’s not that Peter didn’t want to listen. He just wasn’t sure he  _ could _ .

“Fine. We’ll do this the hard way.” Suddenly there was a blinding pain, and Peter yelped like a wounded dog, jerking away from the source.

“That oughta wake you up.” Ross said, and Peter could hear the smile in his voice. “Five more. Go.” 

Peter groaned audibly, but he acquiesced, doing the last five push-ups.

“See? Was that so hard?” Ross asked, smacking Peter’s shoulder in resemblance of a friendly gesture, but coming from Ross it was sinister.

“Look at me.” Ross said, and Peter listened, looking up at the grey haired man.

The pain was back, and it  _ burned _ . Peter’s body jerked as he struggled to push away from whatever was causing it. And as soon as it arrived, it was gone.

“Rule number one, Parker! What is it?” Ross demanded.

“No eye contact, sir, but you said to look at you.” Peter defended, staring back down at his shoes.

“I thought you were smart enough to recognize a test when it was given to you. Guess I was wrong.”

“Sorry, sir.” Finally, a pain Peter knew how to handle. The blow came out of nowhere, snapping Peter’s head to the left and leaving his whole face sore.

“Did I say you could speak?!” Ross shouted, and Peter flinched. Peter remained quiet.

“Answer me.”

“No, sir. You didn’t say I could speak. Sorry, sir.” Peter muttered, feeling blood trail down his face from the cut just below his eye.

“Good answer. I’ll see you tomorrow, Parker.” Ross promised, before slamming the door behind him. Peter remained on the ground for several minutes, just trying to compartmentalise his situation.

He was sure Mr. Stark and the others were doing everything they could to get him home, but he had no idea how long that would take. It could take a really long time, which means Peter had to adapt. He had to learn when it was a test, and when it was an order. Which was easier said than done.

-POV Switch-

“How is he?” Tony demanded the second he answered the phone.

“Not the best. Kid’s got a black eye, and he’s skittish as all hell, but besides that he seems alright.” Rhodey said, and Natasha could practically feel the fury radiating from Tony.

“Okay. Just… Just keep an eye on him. Please.” He begged, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers in frustration.

“I’ll do everything I can.” Rhodey promised.

“Tony, what’s wrong?” Tasha asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Peter‘s been hurt. Not bad, but enough.” Tony growled between his clenched teeth, and he felt Natasha flinch.

“Well have you heard back from the Vice President yet?” She asked, hoping for good news.

“No. Nothing.” He said, falling down onto the couch.

The tension was palpable between the two. Neither of them had ever felt stress like this before. Natasha worried that one of them would be the next to become paralyzed by stress, just like Peter had earlier this week.

“How long has he been gone?” She asked, already knowing the answer but needing it to be said out loud.

“Today is day five.” Tony told her, and the two fell silent again. Tony rested his head on Natasha’s shoulder, and the two remained sat together, offering whatever semblance of comfort they could muster up.

It’s hard to comfort someone when no matter what you say or do, it won’t remedy the situation. Their kid was gone, and even though they knew exactly where he was, and at any moment they could raid the whole place and rescue him, in reality they couldn’t do that. Because they’d only end up on the raft with Peter, and that wouldn’t help him.

The unbearable truth about this situation, was that they had to do this the legal way. And everyone knows the legal way is always slow and painful.


	6. Day 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter meets a new Doctor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SO SORRY I’ve been gone so long. I had a HUGE writer’s block that lasted for months and drove me crazy. But I hope you like this new chapter that I’m finally posting! Thank you for all the sweet comments they really helped motivate me.

Tony was woken up by the shrill ring of his phone. He scrambled to pick it up, hoping it was the VP.

“Yes!” He screamed, hitting answer and putting the phone to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Mr. Stark?” The Vice President asked, and Tony’s heart was hammering.

“Yeah. Yeah it’s me.” He spoke so quickly he wasn’t sure VP Harris could understand him.

“I have an update for you. We’ve received your appeal about Mr. Parker’s detainment, and I’m afraid I have bad news. President Ellis seems to be on board with the whole situation. I agree that Mr. Parker is a minor and Secretary Ross should wait until he’s 18 to deal with all of this, but President Ellis does not agree. Therefore this has to go through Congress, which could take some time.” Tony felt his heart skip a beat.

“How much time are we talking?” Although he wasn’t sure he wanted the answer. Even one more day sounded like an eternity.

“At least a month. Congress is very busy, and so is the President.” And there it was. It was like a blow to the stomach.

“A- A month? Vice President Harris, there must be something you can do. A 17 year old kid is being experimented on like an animal. How is that legal?” Tony insisted, his faith in the government and the justice system fading with each passing moment.

“I’m sorry, Tony, but there isn’t. I can try to push the issue forward, but besides that, my hands are tied. But if it helps, I’ve given Colonel Rhodes unlimited access to the raft facility so he can keep an eye on Mr. Parker. Don’t worry, Ross can’t touch Rhodes without getting one hell of a lecture.” Harris assured him, sounding upset himself.

“I appreciate the help, Vice President Harris. And if there’s anything more you or I can do, please don’t hesitate to call me.” Tony begged, feeling like his heart was being crushed in a hydraulic press.

They said their goodbyes and Tony remained sat on the edge of the bed, trying to remind himself how to breathe.

One month = Thirty Days = 720 hours = 43,200 minutes = 2,592,000 seconds.

2,592,000 fucking seconds not knowing if he’d ever get Peter back. And that was the minimum amount of time. How was Tony supposed to survive 2,592,000 more seconds without Peter? He wasn’t sure he’d survive the next five seconds.

Deciding he couldn’t put it off any longer, he pushed up to his feet and made his way to the living room, finding Natasha and Steve lounging on the couch. Neither of them were relaxed. None of them had been able to relax since the day Peter left.

For the last eight days, one hour, and twelve minutes they’d been on edge.

“Tony? Hey, what’s wrong?” Tasha asked, seeing the terrified expression Tony was offering.

“Harris contacted me.” Tony muttered, staring absently at the floor.

“Okay… What’d he say?” Steve spoke up, looking at Tony with concern.

“He said that Peter’s appeal was going to Congress. And that it could take at least a month for them to see it and make their decision.” Tony could practically feel the way Natasha’s entire body deflated.

Meanwhile, Steve did the opposite and tensed up so tight he thought his biceps would burst.

“So they’re just gonna let a damn kid just rot on that boat because they’re too ‘busy’?” Steve demanded, gesturing angrily.

“That’s what Harris said.” Tony told them, fidgeting with his hands.

How could they be expected to just sit here and wait? There had to be something they could do. But there wasn’t. And he knew there wasn’t.

Of course, they could always raid the raft and free Peter by force. But all that would do is get all of them arrested as well, and that wouldn’t help Peter at all.

So, despite Tony’s basic moral laws, he had to stay here and wait it out.

-POV Switch-

It was a nightmare and nothing more, but a nightmare of the most extraordinary verisimilitude.

Peter jolted upright in his bed, forcing the scream down before it could come out. Rule four: no crying or screaming.

So instead, he hugged his knees to his chest and panted heavily. He had dreamt that he was back in the tower, safe and sound with his family. Or at least he was safe, until Secretary Ross and his armed goons came and dragged him away.

Today was gonna be rough, Peter could tell straight away. The last few days weren’t exactly easy. Dr. Morrison’s tests were getting more and more difficult, on top of more painful. Peter did his best to remember that the Avengers were doing everything they could to get him home, but he hadn’t been given a timetable yet.

Colonel Rhodes came and visited him every day. And Peter kept his head down and refused to speak. It had come to his attention that Secretary Ross didn’t like Colonel Rhodes. And Peter was worried that if he got caught talking to Rhodey, he’d be punished.

The punishments had evolved as well. Instead of a taser, Ross had put a small metal bracelet around Peter’s wrist, which was connected to a remote.

Every time Peter stepped out of line he was electrocuted like a dog. And every time he cried or screamed from the pain he was only shocked again. It was a never ending cycle of torture, and Peter was finding it so difficult not to just break down in his cell.

The door opened at 7:15 am, as it did every day. Except this time he was greeted by Ross, instead of Thing 1 and 2.

“Come with me.” Ross ordered, holding up the remote as a reminder. Peter did as he was told, following Ross to the interrogation room from day one. He was sat down in the single chair in the room, his hands being cuffed behind his back.

“Now, I don’t want to do this the hard way, but our previous techniques don’t seem to be working.” Ross said, circling Peter’s chair.

“Tell me, Peter. How did you acquire your powers?” The Secretary asked, leaning forward to make eye contact with Peter. Peter refused to answer.

For one thing, he wasn’t sure if this was another test, and if he answered he’d be shocked.

For another, the less Ross knew about him, the better.

“Well, I guess we have to do this the hard way. Doctor!” Ross called, glancing back at the door. Peter was expecting Dr. Morrison. But that’s not who came in.

This man looked like a comic book villain. He had an eye patch, and a long scar running down his face, on top of beard scruff and a lab coat splattered with blood.

Peter gave the man a once over, shifting in his chair nervously. “Mr. Parker.” Adding onto the comic character idea, the man had a strong German accent.

“I’m Doctor Stein.” He said, adjusting his coat.

“Doctor Stein here is going to keep you company for a few hours. I’m sure you two will get along famously.” Ross grinned, before backing out of the room.

The doctor set a briefcase on the table, pulling open and revealing several, if not a dozen, shiny silver tools that Peter didn’t want to acknowledge.

“Mr. Parker. I do not want to do this to you. It would be much easier for both of us, if you’d only speak to the Secretary.” Stein said, pulling out a scalpel and making his way over to Peter’s chair.

Peter knew better than to respond to that. He was sure that Ross was listening on the other side of the one way mirror, ready to punish Peter if he broke a rule.

“Fine. Have it your way.” Stein chuckled, dragging the blade down Peter’s forearm. He bit his tongue, refusing to break a rule.

“I heard you heal fast.” He sneered, making several more cuts along Peter’s arms. When he realized that wasn’t going to work, he moved on to alternative methods. At first it was a beating. Which luckily Peter could take pretty easily.

Running around as Spider-Man, Peter had had his fair share of beatings. So he kept his mouth shut and took the blows, feeling blood trail down his chin when his lip split open.

What became a problem was when Doctor Stein pulled out a lighter. The problem being, Peter wasn’t good with fire. Especially when it was pressed into his skin. And like anyone would, it caused him to scream. And that broke rule four. Which caused Ross to shock him.

This cycle went on for nearly an hour, leaving Peter struggling to find his breath as his whole body trembled.

“Boss, I believe I’m done for the day. This kid is one tough cookie.” Stein called, knocking on the door. Ross entered seconds later with a dissatisfied frown on his face.

“Have the men take him back to his room. We’ll continue tomorrow.” Ross ordered, and Peter was too weak to disagree as Thing 1 and 2 carried him back to his cell. They deposited him on the floor, and that’s where he stayed for the rest of the night.

His arms were soaked with blood, and there were burns covering his chest that stung painfully, leaving him restless. So he stayed up and stared at the ceiling until the sun shone through his barred window. This wasn’t going anywhere good.


	7. Day 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another session with Dr. Stein.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I know it’s been a while. And I’m really sorry.

“Rhodey, you better have good news.” Tony growled as he picked up the phone.

“I’m sorry, Tones. It’s pretty bad.” Rhodey started, and Tony could practically hear the wince.

“What happened?” Tony spoke through clenched teeth, worried he might crush the phone in his fist.

“I went in to check on the kid like I do every day. His arms and lips were covered in blood and bruises, and he wouldn’t respond to me. I tried to get his attention for nearly five minutes but he just laid there and stared at the ceiling. I walked past his cell almost eight hours later and he hadn’t moved an inch.” Tony felt like his whole body had turned into jelly. A weakness spread through him and he fell back on the couch.

“Tony? What’s wrong?” Tasha asked from across the room, but Tony ignored her, letting the phone fall to the floor.

She approached him, Steve a few steps behind, and they gathered in front of him, asking endless questions.

“What’d he say, Tony?” Tasha asked again, gentler this time. Like she was speaking to a scared child.

Tony told them what Rhodey had said, all the while staring at his shaking hands. Steve’s whole body tensed and he had to leave the room, meanwhile Natasha deflated like a balloon, and she joined Tony on the couch.

“We’ll get him back.” She said, but Tony couldn’t tell if she was reassuring him or herself.

“Not if they kill him first.” Natasha didn’t know how to respond to that, so the two fell into silence.

-POV Switch-

Peter was snapped out of his rumination by the door slamming open.

“Time to get up, freak.” Thing 1 said, grabbing Peter’s arm and pulling him to his feet.

Peter let Thing 1 and 2 drag him back to the interrogation room, still too out of it to even think of resisting. They arrived moments later and Peter was placed back in the chair next to the table. He folded his arms on the table and rested his head on them, just like he would in school.

“Sit up straight, Parker.” Ross barked, and Peter once again felt the fire burn through his arm and up his chest, if only for a second. He jolted upright in his seat, effectively shocked out of his stupor.

“I’ll ask you again. How did you get your powers?” Ross asked, placing his hands on the table to lean forward threateningly.

Peter ignored him, deciding instead to stare at the light reflecting off the metal surface. Ross seemed pleased by this. He snapped his fingers, and in walked comic book guy. Peter couldn’t be bothered to remember his name.

“Dr. Stein, have fun. Just don’t kill him.” Ross ordered, before stepping out.

Comic Guy placed his briefcase on the table once again, and Peter was too out of it to even flinch at the sight of the silver tools lining the interior.

Ignoring his already cut up and bloody arms, Comic Guy decided to take the scalpel and stab Peter through the thigh. The teen bit his lip to silence the impending scream, allowing only a whine to pass through his lips.

If the electricity wasn’t enough to wake him up, that sure was. Peter was snapped back to reality like a rubber band, his eyes going wide as he had to relearn how to breathe.

“I don’t want to do this, Mr. Parker. If you’d simply answer Secretary Ross’ questions, this wouldn’t have to happen.” Dr. Stein reminded Peter in his heavy German accent.

And maybe it was the fact that he was too tired to care, or maybe it was the fact that he’d just been  _ stabbed _ , but Peter forgot the rules, and snapped back with a short but sweet,  _ “Bite me.” _

And of course he was reminded of it all when he felt the fire. It started at the bracelet on his right hand and quickly moved up his arm and across his chest like a brushfire. It was over in seconds, and Peter was left panting heavily and shaking his hand vigorously, doing anything to make the burning pain go away.

“Watch it, Parker.” Ross’ voice ordered from the speaker in the corner.

The torture continued for over an hour, Dr. Stein moving from scalpels to brass knuckles and finally to shoving Peter’s head in a bucket of water.

And while he struggled to breathe, he was brought back to something Colonel Rhodes had brought up a few months ago.

_ “What do we do with him?” Steve asked, gesturing to the terrorist currently sitting in handcuffs in their living room. _

_ “Waterboarding is always a good option.” Rhodey quipped, glaring start the man in front of him. _

_ No one else seemed to notice when Mr. Stark flinched like he’s been slapped. But Peter noticed. And for the next few minutes he stared at the floor in contemplation, not liking the implications of that flinch.  _

_ He knew a little bit about Tony’s time as a hostage, back in the Afghan cave. Tony told him he was tortured. But he never said anything about waterboarding. _

And now, as Peter lay on the floor, soaking wet and gasping for breath, he wonders if this is how Mr. Stark felt, all those years ago in that cave. The thought makes his stomach roll.

Dr. Stein must be finished for the day, because suddenly Thing 1 and 2 are dragging Peter to his feet and half carrying him back to his cell. Peter collapses on the mattress, painfully coughing up water and struggling to replace it with air.

It’s nearly an hour later that Colonel Rhodes joins him in his cell.

“Hey, Peter. How are you?” Peter knows better than to answer that. The last thing he needs is Ross catching him talking to Rhodey. So instead, Peter offers a silent thumbs up, letting Rhodey know that he was okay.

Or, at least, as okay as one could be in his position. In the last 36 hours he’s been beaten, burned, electrocuted, drowned, cut, and stabbed. But despite it all, he was okay.

Well that’s what he told Rhodey anyway. He didn’t need Mr. Stark worrying anymore than he already was.

“Okay, kid. I’ll be back tomorrow.” Rhodes seemed disheartened by Peter’s thumbs up. Almost as if he recognized the lie. And in seconds, Peter was alone again.

He decided it best to get some sleep, considering last night he lay awake till dawn staring at the ceiling, which left him totally and utterly exhausted.


	8. Day 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Peter exsanguinates, he has flashbacks to some of his worst memories.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is mostly flashbacks (italics). Please enjoy!

“I’m sure you remember your first meeting with Dr. Morrison, where he drew some blood?” Dr. Stein asked, standing right in front of Peter, who was hanging upright from his hands.

Peter doesn’t answer. He’d decided yesterday to keep his mouth shut no matter what they ask. Dr. Stein doesn’t seem to appreciate his silence.

“Well that’s what we’re going to do today. Unfortunately, I’m going to need a little more. But don’t worry. I won’t kill you.” The Doctor explained, and Peter was still distracted by his thick accent.

He felt his whole body seize up in a flinch when the needle pierced his skin. Mr. Stark had drawn Peter’s blood a handful of times, but he’d never liked it. At least Tony was gentle. Dr. Stein might as well have stabbed him.

“Now this should only take a few hours. Although with your powers it may take longer. I’ll leave you to your devices.”

_ Few hours?  _ Peter could already feel the weakness spreading from his arm to the rest of his body. It felt like that time he stood up too fast and collapsed in the lab.

Now, Peter knew he could just break out and free himself. But the repercussions to follow would probably only be worse. So despite his spidey sense blaring like an alarm in the back of his mind, and despite every instinct he’s got, he stays put.

At around ten minutes in he looked up at his hands and they were  _ white _ like a sheet. Not to mention the sweat soaking his t-shirt and dripping down his arms and chest.

He could feel his heart beating faster than normal in his chest and he groaned in frustration. The faster his heart beats the faster he bleeds out.

None of this, of course, could compare to the  _ anxiety _ he could feel. Not that he was dying, he trusted that they weren’t going to kill him. But a delusional kind of anxiety. All he could think about was every mistake he’d ever made. Every wrong he’s ever done.

All of a sudden he couldn’t help but question every decision he’d ever made. It was a strange and deeply unpleasant feeling.

Even more unpleasant however, was the chills running up his spine. Suddenly he was  _ freezing _ and he honestly didn’t remember them talking about this part in high school biology. They’d gone over emergency first aid and had done a whole two day lesson on exsanguination. 

He’d been told the person would feel tired, weak in the knees, nauseous maybe. No one told him he’d be so cold. Oddly enough that was all he could focus on now. Or maybe he wanted to focus on it.

If he didn’t he find himself thinking about the last time he’d been this close to death. In fact, he  _ had died. _ But if he thought about that day, then he’d think about Mr. Stark and he wasn’t sure he could handle that right now. That had been one of the worst days of Peter’s life. The day he died.

He’d watched it happen to the others. How quickly they slipped away in the blink of an eye. But for him, it was  _ slow _ . And maybe it was his powers. Or maybe it was his spidey sense letting him feel it before the others could. But it took nearly 35 seconds for him to fade away and he could  _ feel _ it.

_ Something’s wrong. His spidey sense was screaming something’s wrong, something’s wrong, something’s wrong. He knew what it was. Mere moments ago Starlord and all of his friends had faded away into ash, being swept off by the breeze on Titan. _

_ It’s happening to me too. _

_ Panic was immediate. His heart started pounding as he looked down and could see the flakes starting to sprinkle away from his fingers. _

_ Mr. Stark. _

_ Peter could see his mentor standing about ten feet away, staring at the empty space left behind by the others. The blue lady was watching with terror in her eyes. _

_ “Mr. Stark?” He called, hearing his voice shake. Tony’s head snapped up, and Peter could practically hear his thoughts. _

Not him.

_ Peter stumbled forward, a few of his toes already missing. _

_ “I don’t feel so good.” Understatement of the century, but he couldn’t think of a simpler way to explain what was happening. _

_ “You’re alright.” Tony said, and whether he was trying to reassure himself or Peter, neither of them knew. _

_ “I- I don’t know what’s happening. I don’t understand-” Peter was cut off by his right foot vanishing from underneath him, causing him to collapse into Mr. Stark’s steady arms.  _

_ His heart was racing and he was  _ scared _ . He was dying and he could feel it. It felt like when your leg falls asleep and gets all staticy except the static only lasted for a second, if that, before all feeling vanished completely from that spot. _

_ “I don’t wanna go. I don’t wanna go. Sir,  _ please _ .” He begged feeling all his weight collapse into Mr. Stark, who held him up easily, seeing as ¼th of his body weight had already sprinkled away. _

_ He didn’t dare look down. What would have been the point. He already knew his legs were  _ gone _ , and that wasn’t something he needed to see. He felt Tony lower him onto his back on the rocky ground underneath them. _

_ Mr. Stark wasn’t saying anything and Peter gathered that he couldn’t. He could see that Tony was just as terrified as Peter was. _

_ He felt his elbows hit the ground as his hands could no longer grip Mr. Stark’s shirt sleeve, seeing as they didn’t exist anymore. The fade was up to his shoulders now and all he could think to say was “I’m sorry”. _

_ And he was sorry. Sorry for all the pain he’d ever caused Mr. Stark. Sorry for all the trouble and the distractions. Sorry for dying in his arms. _

_ He felt his lips stop working as the sounds of the wind drained away. And within seconds, he was gone. _

Peter didn’t even have the chance to have ptsd or panic attacks or nightmares about that day because the second he came back he was dropped into the biggest battle Earth had ever seen. And Mr. Stark had nearly died.

When all of that was over and Peter finally had the chance to break down he had nightmares for weeks. Mr. Stark would be woken up nearly once a night by Peter screaming and crying out for help down the hall. Natasha and Rogers were on a different floor so it was always Tony who went to help Peter.

_ “I don’t wanna go. Please, Mr. Stark. Help me! Please.” Peter cried, and when Tony finally made it to his room the kid was tangled in the sheets screaming like he was on fire. _

_ “Peter!” Tony called, hurrying to the kid’s side to attempt to wake him. “Kid, come on, wake up. It’s okay.” _

_ Peter startled awake with a jump, scurrying back into the headboard so fast that Tony heard a thump. _

_ “Hey! Hey, it’s okay, it’s just me.” Peter was shaking like a leaf in the wind and his breaths were coming so fast Tony was surprised he was still awake. _

_ “Come on, Pete, slow your breathing. It’s okay, you’re whole. Just relax.” Peter finally looked up at Tony, trying his best to slow his breathing as he desperately searched his fingers and toes to be sure they were still there. _

_ “See? You’re whole. You’re in one piece. You’re safe, I promise. No more dust.” Tony assured him, relieved as Peter’s lungs finally seemed to be working at a healthy pace. _

_ “No dust?” Peter whined, feeling his cheeks with his hands. _

_ “No dust.” Tony promised, grabbing Peter’s hand. _

_ This was Peter’s sixth nightmare this week. Tony always had to listen to what he was screaming to understand which dream he was having. _

_ It was either Tony dying, or Peter dying. _

_ When it was Tony dying, Peter would yell a lot of no’s and some pleas. When it was Peter, he said ‘I don’t wanna go’ and ‘help me’. Tony had to know which dream it was before waking Peter up because if he said the wrong thing Peter might panic even more. _

_ “I’m not dying?” Peter asked, looking up at Tony for confirmation. _

_ “You’re not dying. You’re perfectly safe. I’m right here. Tasha and Rogers are upstairs. Banner is in the lab. You are  _ safe _ . We wouldn’t let anything happen to you.” _

_ “Okay. Okay. Thanks.” Peter muttered, rubbing the hells of his palms into his eyes to try and stop the tears. _

_ “Do you need me to stay? Think you can go back to sleep?” Peter seemed to think for a moment, before nodding. _

_ “I’m okay. You can go.” Peter finally said, sliding back down into the blankets. _

_ “If you’re sure. I’ll see you in the morning, kid.” Tony patted Peter’s shoulder, taking one last glance at the teen before heading back to his own room. _

_ The rest of Peter’s night was restless and exhausting, but at least he didn’t scream anymore. _

That was two weeks before Ross arrived.

And now, as he sagged in the ropes as all the energy was quite literally sucked from his body, all he wanted was for his mentor to come crashing through that door and tell him he’s whole. That he’s not falling apart because right then, he sure as hell felt as though he were falling apart.

He was so worried about the other Avengers too. He could almost imagine their reactions to all of this. Captain Rogers would remain calm. He’d be the leader like always, he’d take over the role of being the level headed one. But he’d be just as stressed and scared as the others.

Natasha would probably seem like she had it all together. But anyone who knew her could see how stressed she was as well. Peter seemed to be that woman’s only weakness. 

And Tony. Tony wouldn’t even try to pretend he’s got his shit together. What would be the point? They would all know he was freaking out. Peter could imagine the panic on his face every time Colonel Rhodes picked up the phone. God, Rhodey was probably telling them everything.

Today he’d call and tell them that Peter was pale and shaky and exhausted. And they’d all wonder why. And Peter would want to tell Rhodes why, but he couldn’t speak to anything, let alone Rhodey.

It was nearly another hour before Dr. Stein finally returned. And Peter couldn’t even hold his head up. He moaned weakly as the needle was yanked from his arm. Things 1 and 2 held him steady as the doctor slit the rope holding Peter up, and he collapsed into the men like a bag of bricks.

As he practically carried him out of the room, he glanced over to find the  _ massive _ jug that his blood had been led to. How could he lose that much and still live? That had to be at least four liters.

_ “Dr. Banner? How much blood can I lose before I die?” Peter had asked one day, as he coughed up blood violently in the toilet. Mr. Stark was hovering nearby, his hand on Peter’s back. _

_ “Oh, don’t worry, Peter. You’d have to lose at least 4 liters before I would panic. You’ve barely lost half a liter. You’re fine.” Bruce assured him as he scanned the blood. _

_ “It’s just an alien flu. SHIELD has done plenty of research on it. I’ve got this.” Bruce said, hurrying off to the lab to find whatever he needed to fix Peter. _

So four liters. That’s the limit. And there’s four liters right in front of him. He only hoped that with his powers his blood would reproduce faster.

He was deposited on the cot in a heap, unable to even twitch his fingers. He felt paralyzed.

When Colonel Rhodes finally arrived nearly two hours later, Peter’s eyes were hardly open and he could just barely turn his head.

“Hey, Peter. Are you alright?” Rhodey asked, resting a hand on Peter’s shoulder. He could just about muster the strength to shake his head.

“What happened, kid?” Rhodes asked, feeling Peter’s pulse, which was sluggish and heavy.

“Blood.” Was all Peter could manage, moving his lips so little that the camera couldn’t possibly spot movement.

“Jesus. Alright. I’ll try and convince them to bring you some fruit. Just rest, alright?” Rhodes told him, before making his way out of the room.

Peter was asleep not even a second later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would you guys be interested in a chapter entirely from one of the Avengers POV? If so, who would you prefer?


	9. Day 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter gets a break in this episode. I explore some more of the Avengers relationships.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A couple more flashbacks, I hope you don’t mind ;)

Peter woke up exhausted beyond what he believed possible. His whole body was sore, and every time he touched the red encircling his wrists he felt as though he were being electrocuted all over again. And Rhodey never did get him that fruit.

Despite the pain, he stands, limping over to the wall to look out the window as he does every morning. But he didn’t see what he expected.

It would seem this boat had become a submarine. His stomach  _ dropped _ as he gazed out at the dark, deep ocean. Thin streams of light were streaking through the dark water, allowing him to watch in awe as exquisite, multi-colored fish swam back and forth across his window.

It was almost peaceful. Peter had always liked the ocean. He thought it was beautiful. But he’d never actually been beneath it before. It was like a whole other world. He couldn’t see the sea floor but he could imagine the crabs and rays and other creatures slinking through the sand like snakes. He could imagine the plant life growing across the floor, some tall enough that it reached the surface.

_ God, please don’t let me see a shark _ .

Peter never liked sharks. Aunt May had thought they were cool but after visiting an aquarium when he was six and a shark slamming into the tank walls right in front of him, he couldn’t really call himself a fan.

This was all so  _ weird _ . Here he was, a 17 year old boy, underwater in some sort of submarine/boat/prison, while the  _ actual Avengers _ were trying to rescue him.

Great.

Now he was thinking about Mr. Stark again. It seemed normal to him that Tony freaking Stark was his best friend. But when he said it out loud it sounded pretty crazy.

If Tony were here, he’d spend every breath in his lungs screaming at Thing 1 and 2. Maybe even at Ross and Dr. Stein. He was always so protective of Peter. Even from their first fight together. And all Peter ever wanted was to make him proud. To impress him.

He liked to think that Tony would be proud of him now for withholding information throughout everything he’d been through the last 12 days. Natasha sure as hell would be impressed. She knew torture better than anyone.

He only wished she were here to sing to him, or mutter random Russian that Peter never understood but appreciated nonetheless. He wished Steve were here to distract him with fascinating war stories. And boy did he wish Tony were here to give him a pep talk that shouldn’t work but for some reason always did.

Peter found himself wondering what they were doing currently. Knowing them, they were worrying about him and badgering Rhodey for Information. Peter was sure sending in Rhodes was Tony’s idea.

God, the stress of this situation was sure to give Tony a heart attack. Or maybe his anxiety attacks would come back. Or maybe he was planning to do something really stupid that was going to get himself killed or worse. He had a habit of that.

By the time Peter had arrived Mr. Stark’s anxiety attacks were starting to get worse. The wormhole in New York was enough to give anyone PTSD, but add on being betrayed by what was supposed to be one of your best friends, who left you for dead in the freezing cold winter in Siberia? Tony felt as though he couldn’t trust  _ anyone _ . And Peter was right in the middle of it.

He had fought with Tony against Captain Rogers and the other rogues. Although he didn’t know the full story. But when Iron Man knocks on your door and asks for help, you help.

When Tony disappeared in Siberia, nobody would tell Peter anything. And when Tony came back, something was different. He’d let Peter come over on Sundays. Called them ‘lab days’. But Peter could tell something was wrong. Maybe it was his spidey sense, or maybe he was just good at reading people, but Mr. Stark seemed very on edge.

For starters, he was jumpy. Peter once dropped a screwdriver, without even bothering to try and catch it, and when it clattered to the floor Tony had nearly tipped right out of his chair in shock.

_ ‘You okay, Mr. Stark?’ _

_ ‘Course kid. You startled me is all.’ _

Peter didn’t believe him at the time, and a few months later he found out he was right. It took some time to build up Tony’s trust. And Tony had felt so stupid for it. Why was he afraid of a 14 year old kid? But Peter wouldn’t give up.

Slowly, Sunday Lab Days turned into Peter coming over after school  _ every day _ . Sometimes they’d stay down there until the sun came up, sometimes they’d quit early and watch a movie.

Then one day Mr. Stark decided maybe he  _ could _ trust this kid. So he told Peter everything that happened in Siberia. And Peter was so confused.

As a child Peter was always an Iron Man fan. Easily. But he did always admire Captain America. Who didn’t? And to hear that Captain freaking America could do something so cruel made his brain spin in circles so fast he nearly fainted.

It was a  _ long _ conversation. Peter got the inkling that Tony hadn’t told anyone about Steve yet. Tony seemed like he  _ needed _ to talk about it, so Peter listened patiently. That is until Tony asked him,  _ ‘What do I do, kid?’ _ . And  _ woah _ . Iron Man- fucking  _ Iron Man _ \- had Just asked  _ Peter Parker _ for advice.

He had to think about it for nearly a minute.  _ ‘Do you miss him?’ _ He’d asked.

_ ‘Yeah. Maybe. A little bit, I guess.’ _

_ ‘Then I think you should do whatever you can to let yourself forgive him. Understand what he did and why, remind yourself that he did what he thought was right, and if you still can’t forgive him after that, maybe you’re not supposed to. Maybe this is supposed to be your split. But you seem pretty hurt, which implies you really trusted and cared about Captain Rogers, so maybe it’s worth the try.’ _

Mr. Stark stared at him in shock for a couple of seconds, and Peter waited awkwardly for him to respond.

_ ‘What?’ _ Peter had asked, not liking the uncomfortable silence.

_ ‘Are you secretly a 40 year old therapist that just looks 12?’ _ Tony asked, and Peter laughed at him.

_ ‘Does that mean I was right?’ _ Peter guessed, hoping Tony found his advice useful. In all honesty, Peter just said what he would do if he were in Tony’s situation. Which, I guess, is what advice really is in the first place.

_ ‘Yeah.’ _ Tony paused, nodding his head as he stared at the coffee table in contemplation.  _ ‘Yeah, I think you are. Thanks, kid.’ _

Peter decided that should be the end of the conversation. Tony seemed like he needed time to think, so Peter offered a quick,  _ ‘Goodnight, Mr. Stark,’ _ and headed home.

He laid awake in bed that night, hoping he’d said the right thing. And by the next morning, it seemed he had.

_ ‘Rogers is coming to the tower today. You wanna skip lab time?’ _ Tony had texted, and Peter was conflicted. He didn’t wanna miss out on hanging out with Tony, but he also didn’t want to be in the middle of he and Captain Rogers had an argument.

_ ‘I don’t wanna distract you. Tomorrow?’ _

_ ‘You got it.’ _

Tony didn’t contact him again that day. So when Peter arrived at the tower the next afternoon, his curiosity was raging.

_ ‘How’d it go with the Captain?’ _ He’d asked once the two were comfortably immersed in lab work. Tony paused, as if to word his answer correctly.

_ ‘It was okay. He let me know the other rogues were alright, we hashed some things out. Still not sure if I’ve forgiven him yet, but his apology seemed sincere. Although I’m not sure that star-spangled bastard is capable of deceit.’ _ Tony joked, his eyes fixed on the web shooter in his hands.

_ ‘That’s good. At least he apologized.’ _

It was months before Peter finally met the ‘Star-Spangled Bastard’. In the middle of lab time Captain Rogers showed up at the tower. Tony had hurried upstairs, asking Peter to stay put. But come on. How could he stay put? So he followed Tony upstairs to the lobby.

Steve had looked at him in a mix of shock and curiosity.  _ ‘Stark, tell me you don’t have a kid I don’t know about.’ _

Tony had glanced back to find Peter had followed him, sighed obnoxiously, and turned back to Steve.  _ ‘Nope. Just my intern. Kid follows me like a baby duck. What are you doing here?’ _

Peter idled nearby, using his powers to listen to their conversation. He thought he was being discreet. That is, until Captain Rogers approached him with his hand outstretched.

_ ‘Nice to meet you, son. I’m Steve Rogers.’ _ Peter was wary of the Captain. Tony seemed comfortable enough around him, and Peter had grown up being told to trust this guy, but he couldn’t help remembering the betrayal in Siberia, and the fact that this guy had dropped an airport elevated walkway on Peter’s head.

_ ‘Peter Parker.’ _

_ ‘Since when are interns allowed in the lab? I thought that was your secret lair?’ _ Rogers asked, looking back at Tony, who was watching every twitch of Rogers’ muscles. Maybe Tony didn’t trust the Captain as much as Peter thought.

_ ‘Peter is my personal intern. He helps me out.’ _ Tony's explanation was blunt, seemingly trying to avoid the topic.

_ ‘Wow. Tony Stark has a personal intern? Congrats, kid.’ _

And that was the end of that. Peter said an awkward goodbye and hurried back down to the lab, leaving the two Avengers to handle their business.

The next time Peter saw Captain Rogers was on the battlefield fighting Thanos. He was right there when Tony nearly died, and he was there at the hospital as well. He learned that day that while he was dead, Tony and Steve had recovered, along with the other rogue Avengers. That they were all good friends once again.

They talked once or twice, Steve telling Peter that he’d guessed the kid was Spider-Man from the day they met.

That was around six months after he’d met Ms. Romanoff, although they’d only spoken once. She too was there when Tony got hurt, and she too was at the hospital most days. She seemed drawn to Peter. She asked him all kinds of questions about his life, how he got his powers, how he met Tony, what their relationship was like.

By that point he and Tony were thick as thieves. Aunt May had passed away years earlier, a few months after that first meeting with Rogers, and Peter had moved into the Avengers tower within the week. Tony had become his legal guardian a few weeks later.

Peter told her the truth. She seemed trustworthy, and he could tell she really cared about Tony. After that first conversation Natasha had latched onto Peter. She was sweet to him. Kinder than he’d seen her with anyone else who visited Tony’s hospital room. He and Captain Rogers bonded over the weeks as well. And when Tony finally woke up, Peter, Steve, and Natasha were all there to greet him.

They went back to the tower, Steve and Natasha staying a few weeks to help Tony get acclimated, though he fervently denied their help. This time, it was Peter’s turn to have anxiety attacks. His death had really done a number on him, and so did Tony’s accident.

Most days when Peter would collapse to the ground gasping in air desperately, Tony was there to help. Sometimes, it was Natasha, who knew exactly what to do. Once or twice it was Captain Rogers, whose solution was to tell Peter stories about his time in the forties. Which actually helped. 

Snapping back to the present, one year later, Peter realized that that was going to start up again. There was no way he was getting out of this one without serious PTSD. He knew that. But over the last year, he and the Avengers had grown quite close. It was as though he had three parents.

Natasha was the gentle mom. She’d coddle him and sing to him when he was upset. Which always surprised people when they found out, seeing as she’s a freaking assassin. But she also wasn’t afraid to lecture Peter when he did something stupid. A good example being the time he ran headfirst into a burning building to save a screaming toddler. She’d ranted at him for nearly an hour about trusting the fire department to do their jobs. 

Captain Rogers was the stern parent. If Peter got in trouble at school Steve was usually the first to find out. And Peter would get a lecture. But he didn’t mind. Most of the time they were actually pretty helpful. But even the Captain had his gentle and kind moments. He made breakfast every morning, he helped Peter with his homework, though the only subject he was useful in was history. Peter had quite an unfair advantage during the World War II section.

And Tony was a bit of both. Sometimes he was kind and funny. He had advice for every problem high school could throw at Peter. And the pep talks came in clusters. Nearly every morning Peter got some of Tony Stark’s words of wisdom. But sometimes he was tough too. He never grounded Peter. He knew the kid was too mature for that ‘baby time crap’. But he was more than willing to revoke Peter’s patrol privileges. Peter hated that. He loves to patrol, but sometimes when he messed up real bad Tony would take away his suit and have Jarvis warn him every time Peter left the tower. Not to mention the tracker in his watch.

Peter was aware how controlling that seemed, but to be fair, Peter had put a tracker in Tony’s shoe when he wanted to go on a mission that Tony said was ‘too dangerous_’_, so how could he be mad at Tony for pulling the same move? Also, Peter had a habit of getting kidnapped or stabbed in an alley, and Tony needed a reliable way to track the kid.

God, he missed them.

Looking back out the window, the fish reminded him of being four years old and scared at the dentist, Aunt May telling him to look at the fish tank to relax. The memory brought him peace enough to fall asleep.


	10. Day 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony thinks about the Snap while Peter recovers from the day’s activities.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mildly go over Tony and Steve’s relationship but most of this is Tony and Peter during and after the snap in Endgame.

In the five days since his last visit with Dr. Stein, Peter had healed almost entirely. Although, it seemed the redness around his wrist from the shocks refused to go away. Of course, the repetitive shocks since that day probably didn’t help. 

“Time to get up, freak.”

Today was no easier than the two weeks before it. He was dragged to Dr. Morrison’s lab, and told to sit in a chair by the wall.

“Good morning, Peter. How are you today?” Morrison asked, a warm smile on his face.

“Very tired. And homesick again.” Peter answered honestly. There was no point in lying.

“I apologize for that. I’m sure you’ll be home soon enough. But for today, we have work to do.” Morrison seemed genuine, and Peter wasn’t sure if that was comforting or nerve wracking.

“What are we doing?” Peter asked. With every day he became more and more apprehensive of these lab tests, seeing as every day they became more and more intense and painful.

“Today, we’re doing something very simple. We’re testing to see if you can thermoregulate. I’m sure you’re aware of spiders inability to do so?” Morrison asked, typing away on his tablet.

“Yeah. I did a biology project on them last year.” Peter admitted, hoping this would be as easy as it sounded.

“Good. So you know the basics. Humans can survive easily in negative temperatures, however, spiders can not. The lowest a spider can survive in is typically around thirty-two degrees. On the flipside humans can survive up to 140 degrees, but spiders can reach 150. So I’m going to test which you’re closer too.” Oh. That didn’t sound easy.

Peter was already painfully aware of his inability to handle cold. It snows in New York, and he ends up on house arrest because he once got hypothermia at 25 degrees. But to be fair it was his fault for staying out for several hours.

He wasn’t sure, however, how much heat he could handle. He knew it didn’t seem to affect him like it did the others, but how high could he go?

“Now, if you would enter the chamber.” Morrison asked, gesturing to the little white room from his fourth day here.

It got hot first. Peter could feel it, but it wasn’t uncomfortable yet, even though it was already up to 85. At around 100 Peter started sweating, and his breath became heavier, but it was tolerable.

It wasn’t until 125 that Peter felt himself grow lightheaded. The higher it went the more he sweat, which meant he became more dehydrated, which didn’t help the  _ pounding _ headache starting to form in the front of his skull.

At 145 Peter could see the waves of heat bouncing off the cement floor, and he swore he could feel it seeping into his skin like poison. The dizziness grew, until he found himself on the floor, panting like a dog.

Have you ever drank from a water bottle that was left in the sun for a few hours? And the water is so warm that it’s almost uncomfortable to swallow? Well that’s what the air felt like. It was like breathing in hot water.

Slowly, painfully slowly, the temperature dropped back to the 70’s, and Peter felt the weight lift off his lungs, as suddenly he could breathe again.

But it continued to go down. And at around 50 Peter began shivering. 35 and his fingertips began to turn blue. It felt like tiny, hair thin needles were pricking him all over.

Down to the 20’s and Peter once again couldn’t breathe. The air was thin and piercing, and his skin felt like freezer burn.

It didn’t stop until Peter was curled up on the floor about to pass out. Finally the temperature rose back up to the 70’s and settled there, giving Peter room to breathe.

“145 and twenty. Very interesting. We’re all done for the day.” Morrison concluded, returning to his tablet.

Thing 1 and 2 returned Peter to his cell, and he fought off exhaustion so he could eat. Colonel Rhodes arrived hours later, and Peter continued to ignore him, instead laying on his mattress and trying to calm the pounding in his head.

“Hey Peter. I know things must be tough right now, but Tony and the others are doing everything they can. Is there anything you want me to tell them?” Rhodey asked, watching Peter concernedly. Peter responds only with another thumbs up, and Rhodey sighs.

“Okay kid.” And Peter was alone again.

_ Maybe tomorrow will be easier _ . 

-POV Switch-

“Two weeks. How has it already been two weeks?” Tony muttered, burying his face in his hands. Natasha and Steve remain silent. What can they say?

“What did Rhodey say?” Steve asked to break the silence.

“Said the kid was exhausted but otherwise he seemed unharmed.” Tony said monotonously, barely paying attention.

“Any update on Congress?” Tasha asked.

“Nothing.”

All they could do was mope honestly. They couldn’t make plans, they couldn’t rescue Peter, they couldn’t storm that  _ damn boat _ . They couldn’t do anything but sit and let the rage fester.

Tony had never been so angry. And god help him when he got his hands on Ross.

Tony had never liked Secretary Ross. After the Accords incident in 2016, he was mad at his friends. Sure. But he was even more mad when he found out that Ross had locked them up in an underwater prison. It took everything he had not to bust in there and rescue them. But if he got caught he’d only end up in there with them. 

He was more than relieved when he got the news that Steve had done the job for him. Adding onto his criminal record, but after the Thanos incident his record was expunged. Tony made sure of that. 

He hadn’t spoken to Steve in a few months. Not even a phone call. They agreed to take some time. At least, not until  _ that _ day. The day he lost Peter. He’d spent over a month in a spaceship with that blue chick- Nebula- until finally the glowing lady rescued them.

And when he landed back on Earth, and he finally saw his best friend again, he wanted to say one million things. He wanted to apologize, he wanted to yell, he wanted to punch him, but he could barely hold himself up and all his mouth could offer was  _ ‘I lost the kid.’ _

And Steve  _ knew _ . He could see how much Tony cared about Peter, and now here Tony was telling him the kid was dead. Steve could practically feel the despair radiating from Tony. That is, until he passed out in Steve’s arms.

_ ‘Get Bruce! He needs medical attention, now!’ _ Natasha ran off to find Dr. Banner.

Tony refused to talk about Peter over those five years. He spent his days alone in his upstate cabin, ignoring most phone calls. Steve and Natasha would visit him every few days. But Tony didn’t seem to want company. 

Natasha had only met the kid that Tony was so broken up about once, but she could see what this loss was doing to him. Tony was falling apart right in front of them. They all were. Steve had lost Sam  _ and _ Bucky.

Natasha had lost her niece and nephews, and her sister-in-law. And with how little they spoke, it would seem she’d also lost her figurative brother. All she had left now was Tony, Steve, and Bruce. Everyone else was  _ gone. _

And then the day finally came. They finally were able to bring everyone back. She had now truly lost her brother, who’d jumped off a cliff to save her, but the rest of the people were safe and alive and that would have to be good enough.

They were all together at the compound when the missile hit. When they finally broke ground, Thanos’ army was extensive, and they were just four people. After Thor had finally decided to help, of course. Although she felt no contempt towards the Asgardian.

They were alone against an army. Or, at least, they thought they were. Until the portals started appearing. She saw the kid swing through, and she saw Tony have to force himself not to run to the kid.

Finally, nearly 20 minutes into the fight, Tony and Peter were reunited. Peter had spotted Tony a few feet away and had gone to help him up, babbling about portals and ‘Mr. Strange’.

But Tony couldn’t speak. So he just hugged the kid.  _ His _ kid. Who was alive, and safe, and  _ alive. _ Then they were separated again, but Tony forced himself not to worry, and to focus on the world-threatening issue.

When he snapped, his last thought was of Peter. And then he woke up, leant up against a pile of rock. He could see Peter off in the distance, looking around in confusion. That is, until he spotted Tony.

_ ‘Mr. Stark?’ _ Peter asked, wondering why he was sitting on the floor. He still hadn’t pieced it all together.

Tony could practically  _ see _ the moment it dawned on Peter, as the pure  _ dread _ settled on his features and he froze in place, as the two looked at each other in an awfully extended moment of painful silence as Peter’s mind put together all the points.

_ ‘Mr. Stark!’ _ Peter cried, sprinting to Tony’s side. His cries caught Natasha and Steve’s attention, who ran forward as well.

_ ‘Captain Rogers!’ _ Peter screamed desperately, begging for help. Steve and Natasha had sprinted over, and by now everyone was gathered in shock and admiration.

_ ‘Mr. Stark! Hey. Hey, it’s Peter.’ _ He’s crying. Why is he crying?

_ ‘Kid.’ _ Seemed to be all Tony was capable of uttering. 

_ ‘We won, Mr. Stark. We won. We won, you did it. Sir, you did it.’ _ Rogers came forward and grabbed Peter’s shoulder, pulling him away from Tony.

_ ‘I’m sorry. Tony, please.’ _ Peter begged.

That was when it went dark. When Tony woke up it was apparently three weeks later and he was fine. His arm looked like it’d been through a house fire, but he could still feel and move it, so he was okay. And Peter was there. So were Natasha and Rogers. He was happy to be back. 

He could see that the Avengers had been talking to the kid, who technically  _ was _ an Avenger now. Natasha had a hand on Peter’s shoulder and he was absentmindedly leaning towards her.

_ Good. They made friendly. _

Tony couldn’t help but feel that all of that had been Ross’ fault. If the Accords and the huge Avenger split had never happened, maybe they all would’ve been together that day that Thanos came. And maybe they could’ve stopped him together. Maybe Tony wouldn’t know now what it felt like to have your child dissolve in your arms as he begs you for help that you cannot give.

And now he knew what it felt like to have your child ripped from your arms and taken from you for too long. Much too long.

_ There has to be a way. There  _ will _ be a way. And we will find it. _

But for now, they must wait. For a lot longer than they hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed!


	11. Day 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m a total dick in this chapter and I’m sorry guys. Poor fucking Peter man.

_ Tomorrow was not easier. _

“Mornin’, freak.”

They woke Peter so early that the streams of light in the ocean outside his window hadn’t arrived yet, meaning it was still dark out. He fought exhaustion as he was led down the hall. Today they entered a new room. It wasn’t too big, maybe the size of his bedroom at Aunt May’s apartment. The only technology he could see were the speakers in each corner of the room.

They sat him down in the chair furthest from the door, and he felt goosebumps spreading down his arms. A room full of speakers couldn’t possibly be a good thing. And he was right.

Not even one minute after they left him alone in the room, the screaming started. It took him mere seconds to realize who was screaming.

“Natasha?!” He shouted, standing up so fast he nearly knocked over the chair.

He made his way over to the mirror that was clearly a two way, pounding on the glass.

“Hey! What the hell did you do to her?” He demanded, frantically looking between the speakers. She couldn’t be here. They had no authority to bring her here. It’s fabricated. They used some kind of sick technology to make the sounds. Peter was sure of it. 

That didn’t make it any easier to hear, though. He sat back down, covering his ears with his hands and pressing as hard as he could, desperate to block out the sounds of his friend screaming.

It changed a few minutes later. This time it was Captain Rogers. Peter couldn’t tell if he sounded terrified or in pain, and he wasn’t sure if it would be any better either way. 

_ It’s fake. It’s fake. It’s fake. _ He told himself. “It’s  _ fake _ .”

It had to be fake. Nobody could make the strongest people Peter knew scream like that. It’s  _ fake _ . And it was almost easy to believe. Until the voice changed again.

_ Tony. _

“No, no,  _ no _ .” Peter cried, trying once more to block his ears. Unfortunately, with his advanced hearing, it was nearly impossible to block out. Peter didn’t care if it was fake. He couldn’t stand listening to Tony scream like that.

“Turn it off! Please,  _ please _ , just turn it off!” He begged, tears falling down his face. The screaming paused, being replaced by Ross’ calm tone.

“Will you answer my questions?” Ross asked, and Peter wanted to scream himself.

He couldn’t answer Ross’ questions. No way. But he wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take. Ross takes his silence as a ‘no’ and the audio resumes. 

“ _ Peter _ !” Tony  _ screams _ his name, and Peter nearly collapses to the floor in a moment of dizziness.

Then Natasha was back. “маленький паук, help me!”

_ Stop it. Stop it. Stop. It. _

Then Steve. “Peter, please!”

Then Tony. Then Natasha. Then Steve. And it just kept going and  _ going _ until Peter thought his head was going to explode. Then it finally stopped.

“Had enough?” Ross asked as he made his way into the room. Peter was locked in position on the floor, his knees tucked up to his chest and his ears desperately smashed against his ears, tears streaming down his face.

“Don’t worry, we’re not done.”

_ Not done? What the hell else could they do? _

“Men! Get him back to the table.” Ross ordered. And surely enough, Things 1 and 2 lifted Peter by his arms and plopped him back in his chair. Then a laptop was placed in front of him.

“What is this?” Somehow, Peter had forgotten the rules. He was quite literally shocked out of his sob fest, and his head was forced back towards the laptop.

“Just watch.” Ross snapped, hitting the spacebar on the keyboard. Peter did  _ not _ like where this was going.

The black screen quickly lit up with a picture of a dark passageway on what looked like an old ship. By ship, he meant boat, not spaceship.

He waited impatiently for the point, when he finally spotted Natasha sitting on the stairs in the corner of the screen. Her uniform’s blue light lining should’ve given her away sooner, but Peter was distracted by the pounding of his heart.

She seemed to be scrubbing something off of her hands. He wanted to scream a warning when the girl snuck up from behind, but what would be the point? He couldn’t see her face clearly, but the red magic emanating from her fingers told him enough.

_ Wanda? _

Natasha’s eyes flashed red as she clinched upright, and when the red faded away so did she. Her eyes were dazed, staring at something that wasn’t there, and she stumbled as she stood up.

Peter knew all about Wanda’s abilities, so he easily figured out what was wrong with Tasha. She was seeing something awful clearly, because she looked  _ scared _ . A look Peter had never seen her hold.

The camera changed to a different angle as she rounded the corner of the hallway. She was shaking, he could tell, and she was walking like an alcoholic, her gait was wobbly at best.

He was relieved when he spotted Hawkeye in the corner. Clint looked up at the movement, and he rushed to her side immediately. She collapsed in his arms and they fell to the floor together as he pestered over her.

Then the screen went black again. The blackness only lasted for a few seconds before the screen lit up once more. Peter wasn’t sure what he was looking at at first.

Then he spotted Captain America wrestling with someone on the glass floor of what was clearly some sort of helicarrier thousands of feet in the air.

The footage was grainy but he was able to make out the shine of his opponent’s metal arm.

_ Bucky? _

He knew Bucky used to be bad, but he didn’t know he and Steve had actually fought like this. If Bucky was there, that meant this was one of the three helicarriers over D.C. that had been programmed to shoot and kill thousands of people, Mr. Stark included. But Captain America had saved them.

Rogers didn’t talk much about that day. Peter knew practically nothing. And he wasn’t excited to find out. When the Winter Soldier seemed down for the count, Steve got up and ran towards the interior structure to shut down the helicarrier. It was a long and hard climb, becoming infinitely more difficult when the bullet hit his thigh. Peter visibly flinched at the sound of the shot.

Bucky fired more and more, as Steve made his way up to the catwalk where the main control panel was. He was seconds away from plugging in the chip when the third shot came, and Steve went down. Peter didn’t quite see where he was hit, but considering the way he dropped like a sack of potatoes, it wasn’t good. He remained on the floor for what couldn’t have been more than three seconds, before he painfully pushed himself up enough to plug in the chip.

That seemed to be the end of the clip.

Peter knew what was coming. Well, not exactly, but he knew it would be painful footage of Mr. Stark. And again, he was right.

The footage was grainy once again, but he could clearly see what was going on. Tony was sat in a chair in the middle of the room, his face covered in dirt and smeared blood, surrounded by men in masks holding military grade weapons. He was much younger than Peter knew him as. The flag for the Ten Rings was hanging on the wall behind him, and Peter knew what this was. This was the Afghanistan cave that Mr. Stark was tortured in. The one where he built the first Iron Man.

_ ‘You did not tell us that the target you paid us to kill was the great Tony Stark.’ _ One man said.

_ ‘As you can see, Obadiah Stane, your deception and lies have cost you dearly. The price to kill Tony Stark has just gone up.’ _

Tony didn’t seem too scared or hurt. But normally Peter spots fear in his mentor by looking for shakiness in his hands. And seeing as Tony’s hands were tied behind his back, and therefore out of view, his usual tactics wouldn’t work this time. 

Then the scene changed.

_ The men in masks were shouting in a foreign language as they dragged Tony down the hallway. Finally, they reached a tub of water, the size of a bath. _

Oh.

_ Tony was forced to his knees in front of the tub of water, as the bag was pulled off his head. He seemed to notice the water, as he started struggling with the hands holding him. After a few agonizing seconds of tension, his head was shoved into the water and held there for at least thirty seconds. _

_ When they finally pulled him up he gasped heavily and the water dripped down his face and hair. It was only seconds before his head was forced under again. Tony struggled violently with the men holding onto him, but it was no use. There were seven more behind them holding assault rifles. _

_ This continued for what had to have been five minutes. And by the end Tony’s head and clothes were soaking wet and he could barely stand up. The men finally picked him up and dragged him out of view. _

So Peter was right. Six days ago when Dr. Stein was torturing him, as his head was forced into the water he thought back to something Tony had done. And now his suspicions were confirmed. For the first time in his life, Peter hated being right.

Ross sat in the chair across from Peter, watching as he took in everything he’d just seen. Oddly enough, out of everything they’d physically done to him over the last two weeks, this felt like the cruelest thing they could’ve done. This was worse. This was so much worse.

At least during the audio torture he had the comfort of knowing it wasn’t real. This, he couldn’t deny. He had no choice but to face it. But if he did that he might cry, and he’d done enough crying today. So instead, he shoved it down, and he put on a brave face.

“I’m still not going to tell you anything.” That, of course, earned him a shock. Which at least distracted him momentarily from what he refused to think about. Ross gave him a challenging glare, before ordering Things 1 and 2 to take him back to his cell.

“Come on, freak.”

When he was tossed onto the cot, he rolled over so that he was facing the ceiling, and he tried desperately not to think about what he’d just seen. But with nothing else to occupy his mind, he found himself falling down the rabbit hole.

The sounds of his friends screaming were loud in his mind and he couldn’t silence them. Now that Ross was gone he allowed himself to break down. He didn’t care that the camera was watching him. He was sure it was just a goon keeping an eye on him.

Tears streamed down his face in waves as he tried desperately to stop crying.  _ Rule 4: No crying or screaming _ . And he really didn’t want to get punished again. So he sucked it up and drank some water, and he started singing a song. It was stupid, but it kept his mind occupied.

Finally, Rhodey entered to check on him. He spotted the tears and the red splotches on Peter’s face, and he hurried over.

“Hey kid, what happened?” Rhodey asked, careful not to touch Peter.

“Tell me they're okay.” Peter begged. He didn’t care if he got punished for speaking, he had to know for sure that the screams weren’t real.

“They’re fine. I just got off the phone with Tony, they’re okay.” Rhodey said, seeming confused.

“Are they safe?” Peter insisted, grabbing Rhodey’s shoulder.

“Yes, Peter. They’re safe, they’re okay. They’re just worried about you. I promise.” Rhodey assured him, resting a hand on Peter’s knee.

“Thank you.” Peter sighed, falling back against the wall.

“Peter, what happened?” Rhodey asked, not removing his hand from Peter’s leg.

“I’m not allowed to tell you.” Peter shouldn’t even have told him that, but he was already going to get punished for talking so screw it.

“Okay. I’ll go tell Tony you’re alright. You are alright, aren’t you?” Rhodey asked, standing up.

“I’m not hurt, if that’s what you mean.” Peter answered, rubbing his eyes.

“Okay. See you tomorrow, kid.” Rhodey said before he left.

Peter got one of the worst shocks yet that day.

-POV Switch-

“Rhodey? He okay?” Tony asked the second he picked up the phone.

“He’s not hurt. But he was crying. Like a lot. And he kept asking if you guys were safe, and okay. I’m thinkin’ Ross told him you were hurt, or something along those lines.” Rhodey relayed, sounding upset himself.

“Jesus. Okay. Thanks Rhodey.”

“Talk to you tomorrow.” Rhodey said before they hung up.

“What is it?” Steve asked as the two approached Tony in the kitchen.

“Rhodey thinks they told Peter we were hurt. Kid was crying and kept asking if we were safe and okay.” Tony told him, and Steve sighed in relief.

“So they didn’t hurt him?” He asked, his shoulders slumping.

“Not today. Rhodey says he’s okay.” Tony said, feeling relieved himself. Peter was unharmed today, and that would have to be good enough.

“At least he’s knows now that we’re okay.” Natasha said, before heading back to the living room to think.

“Yeah. I don’t expect the same of tomorrow.” Tony muttered, grabbing a soda from the fridge.

Tony was already painfully aware of how much Peter worried about him. He’d experienced it first hand more than once.

_ ‘Mr. Stark! Thank god! Where the hell were you?’  _ Peter shouted, running forward to hug Tony. Tony had nearly fallen over from the impact of a teenage superhuman barreling into him.

_ ‘Pete? Didn’t anyone tell you what happened?’ _ Tony had only been gone for two days. But it seemed that was enough to  _ terrify _ his kid.

_ ‘No! No one told me anything! I kept asking but Tasha told me it would be better if I didn’t know.’ _ Peter complained, still refusing to let go of Tony.

_ ‘Alright, well I’m fine, kid. Everything’s fine. Just a mission complication.’ _ Tony assured him, rubbing Peter’s shoulder.

_ ‘Will you please tell Tasha that I have every right to know where you are when you don’t come home on time?’ _ Peter asked, gesturing towards Natasha.

_ ‘Widow, the kid’s right. Next time, loop him in.’ _ Natasha looked like she wanted to protest, clearly thinking Peter was too young for mission stuff, but Tony offered her a challenging glare, so she nodded.

_ ‘Your face is bleeding.’ _ Peter pointed out, investigating the cut on Tony’s cheek.

_ ‘It’s fine.’ _ Tony said, gently pulling Peter’s hands away.

_ ‘You should see Dr. Banner.’ _ Peter insisted.

_ ‘Peter, look at me. I’m fine. I promise. It’s just a cut.’ _ Tony assured him, smiling to himself.

Usually it was Tony who pestered over Peter getting as little as a paper cut. Now it seemed it was Peter’s turn to panic like a soccer mom.

_ ‘Will you tell me where you were?’ _ Peter asked, giving Tony the option to keep it to himself.

_ ‘Yeah, kid. Lemme get some food first, okay? Come on.’ _ Tony said, wrapping an arm around Peter and walking him to the kitchen.

Peter later found out Tony was holed up in a cabin in the middle of nowhere hiding from several dozens of armed HYDRA soldiers after the suit’s power storage was short circuited. The heat sensors were still intact, and Tony could see heat signatures in every direction for miles, forcing him to stay put.

Finally, the quinjet located him and used retro reflective panels to keep hidden as they touched down to pick him up.

_ ‘Peter? Can I talk to you?’ _ Natasha asked, sitting on the couch where Tony had been moments ago.

_ ‘Yeah, what’s up?’ _ Peter asked, turning to face her.

_ ‘I want you to understand, I didn’t keep Tony’s situation from you because I don’t trust you. And it wasn’t because I think you’re too young. I kept it from you because I knew how worried you would be, and I wanted to spare you that.’ _ She explained, and Peter was shocked for a second.

_ ‘But I  _ was _ worried. The whole time.’ _

_ ‘Yes, but where did you think he was?’ _ She asked.

_ ‘I don’t know. On a mission, in the hospital, I don’t know.’ _ Peter answered honestly.

_ ‘And if I had told you he was trapped in the middle of nowhere in immediate danger surrounded by HYDRA soldiers with no weapons or food or water, can you honestly tell me you wouldn’t have been more worried?’ _ She asked, and honestly? She had a pretty good point.

_ ‘I guess that makes sense. Thanks, Tasha.’ _

_ ‘Knowing what I just explained to you, do you want me to tell you the truth next time something like this happens?’ _

_ ‘Yeah. I would still rather know. Maybe I could’ve helped get him home sooner, y’know?’ _

She smiled at him, placing a hand on his knee.  _ ‘You got it, Peter. Goodnight.’ _

That was three months after the Thanos fight. Another month after that, Peter got to test his theory.

Natasha went on a solo mission, against the wishes of all of the remaining Avengers, and she missed check in on her third day.

_ ‘Peter! Try and get a hold of Natasha, I’ll try and get her tracker working again.’ _ Peter was fully involved in the search, and Natasha had been right. Being involved did make him worry more, but he didn’t care because at least he felt like he was helping.

One week later and they had received no word from or about Natasha from anyone. And Peter’s guts felt like they were eating themselves alive. He actually kind of wished Tony had told him she was on vacation. Because knowing she was missing, possibly hurt, possibly  _ dead _ , god knows where on Earth, his whole body was covered in goosebumps and his stomach was  _ killing _ him.

_ ‘She’ll be okay. You know Natasha, she can get out of anything.’ _ Tony had reassured Peter, simultaneously reassuring himself. Rogers didn’t say much, just kept checking his phone every five minutes.

Finally, seven days into their search, she just walks through the front door. Well, ‘walk’ probably isn’t the right word. More like ‘hobbled’. She was favoring her right leg, which made sense considering her left had two bullet holes above her knee. There was a deep cut above her left eye which bled heavily, the red liquid coating the side of her face and drying there, and her right arm was wrapped tightly around her stomach, most likely protecting broken ribs.

Peter glanced up, not even noticing at first and looking back down at the clipboard in his hands. Before his brain finally caught up and red alarms started blaring through his skull.  _ ‘Tasha!’ _ He shouted, dropping his clipboard and sprinting to her side.

_ ‘Peter.’ _ She said, immediately falling onto him. Luckily, he was easily able to hold her up.

_ ‘Mr. Stark! Captain Rogers!’ _ He screamed, as he fully took in Natasha’s state. She was shaking, and at first Peter was surprised, before he felt just how freezing cold her skin was.

_ ‘What is it, Pete?’ _ Tony asked as he walked into the room, his eyes on his phone. When Peter didn’t answer, Tony finally looked up.

_ ‘Nat?!’ _ Tony called, rushing towards Peter, who was still holding up practically her entire body weight.

_ ‘Rogers! Get Bruce!’ _ Steve finally came upon them, before turning right back around and sprinting in the opposite direction to find Dr. Banner.

When Natasha was finally let out of the Med Bay four hours later, Peter was quick to hug her.

_ ‘Are you okay?’ _ He asked, careful not to hurt her. She smiled warmly as she returned the hug.

_ ‘I’m alright, Peter.’ _ She promised, letting him lead her to the couch.

The three men sat in anticipation as she explained where she had been for the last week. It was a long story, and Peter listened in awe.

Natasha had learned that day just how attached Peter was to her.

Peter tended not to worry as much about Captain Rogers. It wasn’t because of a lack of admiration or attraction. It was as simple as  _ he’s Captain America _ . He’s 6’2”, full of nothing but muscle and super serum, and he can lift cars. There’s nothing to worry about!

Knowing how much Peter worried about Tony, and Natasha, and yes even sometimes about Steve, he could only imagine what they could have done to make him break the rules to ask Rhodey if they were safe. If they told Peter the Avengers were hurt, Peter must have been terrified.

_ Poor kid. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah


	12. Day 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a filler to give y’all a little snippet while I work on my writer’s block. Thanks for reading!
> 
> Please read the end notes

Another day, another visit with the German psychopath they called a Doctor.

“You know what? I’d like to see your degree. What university did you study at, because I’m not convinced you’re a real doctor.” Peter quipped, not even surprised when he received a hard smack across the face in response. 

Dr. Stein opened his briefcase, slowly pulling out a run of the mill hammer. And Peter felt his heart skip a beat. This wouldn’t be fun. 

“You’re really gonna make me do this?” Stein asked in his heavy accent, holding the blunt side of the hammer against Peter’s knee.

Peter doesn’t respond. 

Suddenly the hammer hits Peter hard in the knee, and then he’s screaming. Peter could swear that he feels the bones in his knee  _ shatter _ . His vision blurs with white hot fire and there’s a ringing in his ears like a bomb just went off. He leans his head back and takes deep breaths, his face trapped in a grimace.

When his hearing finally returns, he can hear Ross yelling. Something about Dr. Stein almost killing Peter, but he can’t listen properly because his brain is  _ whirring _ . Peter’s never felt pain like this before. It’s sharp and sore and it  _ burns _ .

Slowly the white fades from his vision and everything starts to come into focus again. He manages to remember how to breathe, and he blinks away the tears that he hadn’t realized were building in his eyes.

Ross is speaking calmly now, if not still a little angry, and somehow Peter’s mind puts together that Stein has left the room.

When the room finally stops spinning, Peter feels nausea settle in his stomach. He lifts his head to look at Ross, who’s staring at him and calmly asking if he needs to see Dr. Morrison.

Peter knew that Ross was gonna keep talking until he responded to him, so he forced the nausea down enough to get out a sentence.

“Well I think I figured out how to breathe again, so I’m good.” Peter forced himself to speak, despite how breathless he felt, and how he was convinced that if he opened his mouth he would vomit.

“Well I guess that’s a good start.” Ross jokes, clearly trying to make Peter feel worse. But Peter doubts anything could make him feel  _ better _ .

His knee is  _ throbbing _ , and blood is soaking his sweats. His head is pounding harshly, and the nausea is only getting worse.

“Men! Take him to the doctor!” Ross barked, and Thing 1 and 2 entered the room and lifted Peter to his feet. He made a sound akin to a wounded dog when he landed on his feet, and the men compensated accordingly by lifting him off the ground. 

When they arrived at Dr. Morrison’s lab, the man took in Peter’s appearance. The sweat coating his face, the blood  _ drenching _ his pant leg and dripping onto the floor, and the pure agony written on his face.

“What have you animals done?” Morrison snapped, gesturing for the men to get Peter onto the table. They were quick to leave, clearly not wanting to be yelled at any more.

“Peter? Tell me what they did.” Morrison asked, leaning forward to get Peter’s attention.

“Knee. Hammer.” Peter panted, moaning as every breath jostled his leg. 

“Sweet mother of Einstein. Don’t worry, I can help.” Peter wanted to laugh at his usage of Einstein, but it only came out as a whine. Peter slipped into unconsciousness for only a few minutes, but it was long enough for Morrison to X-ray his knee.

When he woke up again, Dr. Morrison was quick to explain the problem.

“Well, your patella is entirely decimated. And the adjoining ends of your femur, fibula, and tibia are fractured at best. Broken at worst. You should not move your leg even a centimeter until it heals. With your accelerated healing rate, I’d say maybe four days. I’ll let the secretary know.”

“Thanks.” Peter mumbled, already falling back asleep. 

-POV Switch-

“Rhodey! How is he?” Tony begged the second he picked up the phone. Everyday Tony waited anxiously by the phone, desperately hoping for it to ring. And yet, dreading it at the same time. When the phone rang, he got news about his kid. Confirmation he was still alive. But he also got news that Peter was hurt. Today was no different. 

“It’s uh… it’s bad, Tones.” Rhodey started, before hesitating.

“Just tell me.” Tony stuttered out, his hands already shaking. When Rhodey started sentences like that, things weren’t bad. They were  _ bad _ .

“His patella is shattered, and the adjoining ends of the tibia, fibula, and femur are broken as well.” Rhodey quoted the Doctor directly, not wanting to get anything wrong.

“Alright. English please?” Tony asked, the words  _ shattered _ and  _ broken _ blaring in his mind like fire alarms.

“His knee is broken. Pretty bad too. Doc says bed rest for four days at least. But on the plus side, the kid’s gonna get a decent break.” Rhodey said, trying as best as he could to focus on the positive.

“God. Okay. Yeah. Thanks Rhodey.” Tony said as all the blood rushed to his feet and he nearly fainted. He waits until he can stand steadily once again before heading to the living room.

Natasha and Steve stayed in the living room, anxious for news. Which Tony relayed both happily and sadly.

“The kid’s knee is broken. Rhodey says it’s pretty bad. But he’s on bed rest for four days, which means they can’t hurt him.” Tony muttered, fiddling with the phone in his hands. He hears Tasha gasp, and he almost swore he could hear Steve’s jaw clench.

“Okay. Well I guess… that’s a good thing. We have to focus on the positive.” Steve offered, hoping he could convince the other two to think about the positive.

But Tony was having trouble.

On the one hand, Peter was bed ridden for four days. Which meant they couldn’t hurt him for four days. Which gave Tony four bonus days to save his god damned kid. 

But on the other hand, Peter was in a hell of a lot of pain. And he was bed ridden for four days. Tony had broken a few bones before so he could only imagine the amount of agony the kid was in.

How messed up was this situation that Peter getting his knee  _ shattered _ was actually a good thing?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyyy. If any of y’all have any requests or ideas pls let me know in the comments!


	13. Day 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another filler for ya. Sorry it’s taking so long. :(

When Peter woke up the next day his knee was throbbing painfully. He managed to get out of bed and hobble over to the window just in time to see a clownfish swim past the glass. His first thought, unsurprisingly, was of Finding Nemo.

_ “So, kid, what do you wanna watch?” Tony asked, handing Tasha the large bowl of popcorn. Peter was settled with his head in her lap and the two dug in instantly. _

_ “Finding Nemo!!” Peter yelled, and Tony gave him a glare. _

_ “Again? We just watched that one last week.” Steve reminded him, methodically breaking apart his Hershey bar and stacking the pieces in piles of four. _

_ “But it’s my favorite! And it’s my birthday! You can’t deny me my favorite movie on my birthday!” Peter whined, and Tony knew he had lost. Peter had a damn good point. _

_ Tony put the dvd in and made himself comfortable on the couch next to Natasha, Peter’s feet resting in his lap. These were the moments he loved. Just him, and his kid, and his best friends watching some silly movie together and laughing. No monsters, no aliens, no bad men. Just a family. _

_ Tony had been so relieved when Natasha and Steve took the kid in immediately. _

_ With Tasha, it was something Tony had never seen from her before. It was like she trusted Peter wholeheartedly from the moment he walked into the room. Or at least that’s what Rogers and Peter had told him. _

_ -One day after Tony’s snap- _

_ “Can I see him? Please?” Peter asked the nurse, desperately rubbing his eye with his sleeve to dry the never ending tears. _

_ “Of course. I’ll take you to him.” _

_ Peter didn’t need an escort. He was far too familiar with the Avengers tower medbay. But he followed silently behind her nonetheless. _

_ He wasn’t expecting to find more people waiting for him. Captain Rogers was standing in the corner with his arms crossed, seeming lost in thought. _

_ The red haired woman stood at the opening of the door, and greeted Peter. _

_ “You must be Peter. I’m Natasha.” She said, a warm smile lighting up her face, as she held her hand out waiting for a shake. _

_ Peter shook her hand, not able to stop himself from shaking. She must have sensed it. _

_ “Don’t worry, Tony is in the very best of hands. He’ll be just fine. Here, come sit.” _

_ “How do you know my name?” Peter asked, trying to focus on anything but the lifeless body of his mentor laying in front of him. _

_ “Tony told me all about you. Not the Spider-Man part though, I figured that out for myself.” She was smiling, but Peter could sense how sad she was. She must really care about Tony. _

_ Captain Rogers seemed to snap out of his thoughts, finally realizing Peter was in the room. “Oh, nice to see you again, Peter.” _

_ The two of them had met once over five years ago. Although for Peter it felt like nothing. And he was surprised Rogers remembered him. Tony really must talk about him a lot to the Avengers. _

_ And Peter noticed that he, too, was sad. But it was a different kind of sad. Natasha seemed worried for her friend. Sad that he was hurt. _

_ Rogers seemed guilty. Like he wished the two could trade places. Although Peter couldn’t fathom how this could be Steve’s fault at all. _

_ “So, tell me about yourself.” Natasha requested, obviously trying to distract the teen whose face was still blotchy and red from the incessant tears that had run the whole way to the tower. _

_ “Um, well I’m Peter. I’m a student at Midtown High. I like science and math, I’m on the decathlon team. My best friends’ names are Ned and MJ. And I’m Spider-Man.” Peter droned, staring at his fingers as if they were the most interesting thing in the room. _

_ “And how’d that happen?” Natasha asked, seeming genuinely curious. Maybe Tony hadn’t spilled everything to her yet. _

_ “Well, this guy I used to know took me to a really cool science lab. And some weird spider bit me. And then I woke up with powers. And… I don’t know. I just thought I could help people. And then Mr. Stark showed up at my apartment asking me to go to Germany and that’s it.” _

_ Peter didn’t miss the way Captain Rogers cringed at the mention of Germany. Peter still didn’t know the full story behind that trip, and he wasn’t sure he ever would. _

_ “How’d Tony find you?” She asked, and Peter was grateful for the distraction. _

_ “I don’t know. He never told me. I guess on Youtube or something.” Peter shrugged, finally looking up at the two conscious people in the room. _

_ Captain Rogers was quite intimidating. But Peter attributed that to the fact that he was Captain America and he was 6’ 2” and buff as a boulder. But he seemed nice enough. Peter didn’t like him at first. But that was only because of everything Mr. Stark had told him about the super soldier. But after Steve stayed in the tower for a week and had periodic visits, and Tony seemed to have warmed back up to him, Peter decided to give the Captain a break and try to get along with him. _

_ Natasha was very pretty. Peter could see why she was such a good spy. Her hair stood out quite a bit for an assassin, but Peter figures she did that on purpose. When he watched the news on 2012 and saw the Black Widow fighting alongside Iron Man and the Hulk, he assumed she’d be really tough and rude and, well, like an assassin. But his first impressions of Natasha are that she was kind, and gentle, and cared about her friends.  _

_ He spent the next three weeks warming up to the super soldier and the spy, and he actually really liked them both. Rogers loved to distract Peter with war stories, and it seemed to be good for them both. Meanwhile, Natasha spent all of her change buying Peter snacks from the vending machine, and telling him funny stories about Tony, from long before Peter knew him.  _

_ When Tony finally woke up, Peter had bonded with the two of them, and was relieved when they insisted on moving in to help out around the place. _

_ -Sometime after Civil War- _

_ Rogers has taken a little longer to warm up to the kid. The first thing he noticed about Peter was that he adored Tony. The two of them seemed to have some sort of rhythm in place. _

_ Peter would wake up at 6:45am, exactly 15 minutes after Tony, who would already be working on breakfast. The two would eat together, then Tony would give Peter a ride to school. He spent the school hours down in the lab or watching terrible TV shows. Peter apparently insisted on walking home, and once he arrived he’d toss his backpack onto the counter and head straight down to the lab with Tony. The two would work till the moon arrived, then have dinner at 7:30 exactly, then watch a movie. Then bed for Peter. Tony stayed up until at least 2:00am after that. _

_ He only saw this for two days before he left again. And the next time he saw the kid they were fighting Thanos on the battlefield and Tony was dying.  _

_ He learned more about Peter during the five years of the Blip. And once more during the three weeks in the hospital. The day Tony snapped Peter was the first person at Tony’s side. He was talking but Steve couldn’t hear much through the kid’s agonizing sobs. _

_ Tony’s eyes slipped shut and his hand hit the floor, and it was like a bomb went off in the kid’s heart. He just wouldn’t stop crying, so Steve did the only thing he could, and he grabbed the kid in a hug and just held him. They didn’t know each other. They’d only met once. But Tony was beyond important to the both of them, so they’d just have to sit here and suffer together. _

_ Natasha came forward a minute later and gently took Peter into her own arms, leading him away from Tony’s body. Steve followed, not sure what else to do. They sat together while Peter sobbed, the two adults trying to hold back tears of their own. _

_ “I’ve got a pulse!” _

_ Steve didn’t see Peter again until the next day in the medbay. He tried his best to comfort the poor kid. But there was only so much he and Natasha could do. _

_ -Peter’s birthday one year after Tony’s snap- _

_ The three adults sat in the living room, watching Peter watch his favorite movie. He was smiling and laughing, and they were all thinking about how they met the kid. _

_ For Natasha and Steve, these meetings were anything but happy. But for Tony, it was one of the best days of his life. _

_ Peter felt unbelievably lucky to be cuddling with iron man and black widow on the couch in the living room of Avengers tower with Captain America a few feet away. It seemed impossible that it would be him of all people, but he was grateful nonetheless. _

Peter was still grateful. Especially now. Knowing that the three strongest people he’d ever met were searching day and night for a way to bring him home brought him comfort. He was also grateful for his day off.


	14. Day 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I feel bad for writing this lol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyyyyy friends. Listen, I know I’ve been gone for a while, and I’m sorry, but I’ve got very caught up working on a secret project and I’ll be honest, I totally forgot this fic existed but I have the mood back and I promise I’ll get back to writing this one. For those curious about the secret project, it’s secret for a reason tbh and idk if I’ll ever post it here but I guess we’ll find out sooner or later. Anyway, sorry for vanishing. Enjoy Peter suffering.

By day two of his break he had already mostly healed, and Ross considered that enough. So Peter found himself being dragged into the lab once more. And Peter was disappointed to find Dr. Stein instead of Morrison. 

“Sit down.” Stein ordered, and Peter was quick to listen.

The comic book villain reached into his bag, pulling out a large and intimidating syringe. And Peter’s whole body tensed up as his Spidey Sense screamed in his mind.

“Sit still.” Peter  _ did not _ want to let Dr. Stein inject him with whatever the hell that was, but he knew he didn’t have a chance. That didn’t stop his heart from racing, however.

The shot was not as painful as Peter expected, but he didn’t have time to acknowledge that, seeing as his vision became blurry immediately. His whole body became light and fuzzy as he slid down the chair and onto the floor, his eyes falling shut.

-Dream-

When Peter opened his eyes again he was in the middle of the road, and there were explosions in every direction. He pulled himself to his feet and looked around, finding Tony, Captain Rogers, and Tasha all fighting a man in a cape.

His memory rushed back to him in seconds and he jolted, running back into the fight. 

The man hit Steve in the chest with a bolt of electricity, sending him flying into a building across the street.

Peter was preoccupied getting civilians out of the surrounding buildings, and convening with the police. Meanwhile, Natasha and Tony were alongside Steve fighting the man.

Peter joined them in the street once Karen confirmed all the civilians had been saved. He wasn’t sure how it happened, but Natasha, Steve, and Peter ended up far enough away from Tony and the man that Peter couldn’t even hear what they were saying.

It all happened so fast. One second, it looked like Tony was winning. The next, there was a large blade protruding from the left side of his chest.

“No!” Peter screamed, moving to run towards the two. But he barely made it one step before strong arms wrapped around him and pulled him back.

“No! No no no! Let go of me!” He shrieked, fighting to break out of Steve’s hold.

Steve held on with everything he had, desperate to keep the kid out of danger. But he too wanted nothing more than to run to Tony’s aid. 

By now Tony had fallen to his knees, and the man let go of the blade, leaving it sticking out of Tony’s chest. The silence was deafening. Tony slowly pulled the blade out of his chest, letting it fall to the floor. The clash of the metal hitting the ground echoed in Peter’s mind.

The world seemed to slow down. Peter’s brain was  _ whirling _ , and he couldn’t think and he couldn’t breathe. All he could do was scream and cry as he fought desperately to break free from Steve’s too strong arms. Tony slumped back against a street lamp, too weak to sit up.

“Code green!” Natasha shouted through the earcoms, but Peter wasn’t listening.

“Captain,  _ please _ !” Peter screamed, struggling against the tight hold Steve had around the teenager’s waist.

“Peter! If you go over there, you’re going to die. Wait for Hulk.” Steve ordered, relieved as he felt Peter go limp in his arms.

Hulk crashed onto the battlefield roaring deafeningly. He launched the man into a surrounding building, and with the villain distracted, Steve let Peter go.

The teenager sprinted with everything he had to Tony’s side, followed closely by Steve and Natasha.

“Mr. Stark. Mr. Stark, hey _ . _ Hey, it’s Peter. Tony,  _ please. _ ” Peter begged, sitting on his knees in front of Tony.

“Kid.” Tony whispered, barely even looking at Peter.

“Hey. Hey, everything’s gonna be okay. Just stay with me. You have to.” Peter cried, a hand on Tony’s shoulder gripping so tightly his knuckles turned white.

“Peter.” Natasha said, petting Peter’s hair.

“ _ No _ ! No, I’m not leaving him.” Peter insisted, moving closer to Tony. 

The billionaire's eyes had slipped shut by now, and everyone could practically hear the silence followed by the stopping of Tony’s breathing.

“No no no. Oh god.” Peter whined, pulling Tony’s limp form into a hug. Maybe if he just held him tight enough, he couldn’t disappear. “Oh  _ god _ , please no.”

Natasha and Steve looked at each other on the verge of tears, ignoring the crashing of Hulk fighting the man in the background.

“Peter, honey. Come here.” Natasha called gently, pulling Peter away from Tony. Peter was sobbing so hard he couldn’t breathe, and Natasha felt her heart shatter.

“Peter, baby, you have to breathe.” She reminded him, wrapping him up in a hug.

“No. No, I can’t. I can’t. God, Tasha  _ please _ .” Peter begged, falling apart in her arms. She and Rogers looked at each other with tears in their eyes, and it took everything Tasha had not to break down crying as well. But she knew that would only upset Peter more, so she buried her face in his hair and tried her best to calm him. 

“I’m sorry, sweetie. I’m so sorry.” She muttered, holding him tightly. Neither Natasha nor Steve had ever seen Peter, or anyone for that matter, cry like this. It was like his heart had been ripped out of his chest.

Finally, the Hulk must’ve defeated the man, because he joined them on the curb. Steve shook his head at Hulk’s curious expression, and even Hulk looked sad. The beast let out a roar that shook the foundation of the buildings surrounding them, and Peter only cried harder.

Natasha held him close, wrapping her arms around him and muttering in Russian. She knew Peter didn’t understand her, but it always seemed to calm him. Steve held his hand out and petted Peter’s hair, wishing there was more they could do. 

Peter’s mind was  _ racing _ . Tony couldn’t be dead. Peter couldn’t live through that.

It was several more minutes of sobbing and hyperventilating before Peter fell limp in Natasha’s arms, his eyes shutting as he fell asleep.

-Back to Reality-

Peter jolted upright off the floor with a huge gasp of breath, looking around in panic. Reality seemed to dawn on him as he remembered where he was. He sighed heavily, pushing himself back up into the chair. His body still felt weak and his mind still needed a moment to catch up.

“So, tell me Peter. What did you see?” Dr. Stein asked, leaning forward to level himself with Peter, who was still breathing just a little too fast. 

“Go ahead. Tell me. I’m ever so curious.” Stein continued, patting Peter’s shoulder menacingly.

“I saw Mr. Stark die.” Peter whispered, burying his face in his hands to hide the tears brimming. Rule 4: No crying or screaming.

“I suppose I should’ve expected that. Well, head back to your room and dwell. I’ll see you soon.”

Peter was picked up and dragged back to his room, and he barely even noticed when the door slammed behind him.

He’d thought that it was real. That Tony was really dead. And he’d already had to live through that once. Twice was unbearable.

Peter waited anxiously for Colonel Rhodes’ arrival, needing to know that Tony was alright. So when the door finally slid open and Rhodey emerged, Peter forgot every rule in the book.

“Is he okay?!” He shouted, jumping up and running to Rhodey.

“Who?” Rhodey asked, staring incredulously at the kid.

“Mr. Stark. Is he okay? Please, please just tell me he’s okay.” Peter begged, grabbing Rhodey’s sleeve in his fist. 

“Yeah. Peter, Tony’s fine. I promise.” And finally Peter could breathe. His shoulders slumped as he let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, and he fell back onto his mattress.

“What the hell happened, kid?” Rhodey asked, moving closer to the bed.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m fine. Go, before you get in trouble.” Peter muttered, his face hidden behind his hands. 

“Alright. See you tomorrow.” Rhodey called, pulling his phone out the second he closed the door.

Peter earned one hell of a shock that night, but he didn’t care. Tony was okay.

-POV Switch-

“Well?” Tony asked the second he answered the phone.

“Are you still alive?” Rhodey asked in return, clearly sarcastic but sounding upset.

“Yeah, I’m- I’m fine, Rhodey. Why?” Tony was beyond confused, and it seemed Natasha and Steve were too.

“Kid asked. Specifically about you this time. I’m guessing he saw something again.” Rhodey told him, watching Peter sleep through the little window in the cell door. “He broke the rules to ask me. And he looked scared, man.”

Tony took a deep breath, nodding at Tasha and Steve to let them know that Peter was unharmed.

“Alright, well tell him I’m okay. And make sure he believes it.” Tony insisted, passing the phone to Steve so he could go sit down.

He’d had enough of this day to day worry and panic and fear. He’d had enough of them hurting his kid. All he wanted was to have his son back in his arms. When in the hell did that become too much to ask?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you catch Tony calling peter his ‘son’? Just a cheeky slip there, you’re welcome.
> 
> Honestly if you’re still here at this point good for you tbh cuz idk why you’d stay this long. I’m awful at schedules and I have the work ethic of a dead squirrel sooooo... anyway, thx for reading, I know I went a little light on the Tony end of things in this chapter and I promise I’ll make up for that in the next one. <3


	15. Please read

Hiya! It’s Beck. I know I’ve been gone for awhile and I know y’all love this story and are very patiently hoping for a new chapter. Now I’m gonna explain why I’ve been gone.

It’s this beautiful thing called ‘hyperfixation’. It’s well documented with ADHD and ASD. You can google the proper definition but it’s different for everyone. Here’s what it does to me:

Basically when I’m hyperfixated on something it’s exactly what it sounds like. I’m completely _fixated_ on the thing. It’s all I can think about, it’s all I wanna look at, hear, talk about, etc. It’s a completely uncontrollable and inescapable obsession that can last from a few days to several months.

I can hyperfixate on all kinds of things! Including but not limited to; fictional universes, a specific fictional character, celebrities and/or groups of celebrities, youtube channels, movies, tv shows, even books!

Now when I started this fic I was stuck in a several month long hyperfixation on Marvel, Peter and Tony in particular. It started last October when I wrote Irondad for Whumptober. And it lasted until July 22nd of this year.

Unfortunately, on July 22nd I changed fixations and am now completely and irrevocably hyperfixated on One Direction and each of it’s individual members.

I’ve been listening to their music, band and solo, nonstop, I’ve watched both of their movies, I’ve been rewatching old interviews and obsessively checking their topic on twitter and their tag on tumblr.  
  


I know it’s silly to be stuck on 1D in 2020, given that I’m 19 years old, but I can’t control what I fixate on. As of today, September 13th, my fixation has not lessened even microscopically.

So, what does that have to do with this fic? As I explained earlier, my fixation is all I want to think about, talk about, look at, listen to, etc. Which means I just simply do not have the mental capacity to focus on Marvel or literally anything else for even five minutes, let alone long enough to write a 1000+ word chapter of a story.

I only want to deliver the best to you all. I want to put my heart and soul into every single paragraph of this fanfiction, and unfortunately I simply cannot do that right now.

I hope you understand this. The second my fixation on 1D releases I will watch a Marvel movie to trigger the fixation back on Marvel, which is usually how it works, and I will jump right back into this story full force.

I’m posting this to make it very clear that this fic is _**NOT ABANDONED.**_ Simply on hiatus!

I promise I will do my best to make the next chapter worth the wait when I’m able to return. Please do not feel obligated to wait around for my ADHD brain to catch up. I’m honored that y’all want another chapter and I’ll do everything I can to get it to you as soon as humanly possible for me.

I love and appreciate every single one of you who’ve read and left kudos/comments on this fic.

Hopefully I’ll see y’all soon!

-Beck


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